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Also known and spelled as: boogerman, boogeyman, boogieman, boogie man, boogyman and bogyman
Pronounced – boo g-ee-man, boh-gee-, boo-
The term or name bogeyman is often used to describe an entity or monster that causes an irrational source of fear. The bogeyman's appearance is frequently nebulous and vague, leaving much to the imagination. This has led some people to believe that it may be a shape shifter that can reflect what a person most fears.
Stories of the Bogeyman vary by culture and even from home to the next as it is a creature often used by parents to keep children from misbehaving. For many children, that irrational fear of the unknown, that unknown terror under the bed, in the closet, lurking just outside a window, coming through unlocked doors and down chimneys is very real. Even if parents didn't tell stories to frighten children, there would still be this irrational fear of the unknown for many. Many though, outgrow this irrational fear as they grow up and often find there truly is nothing to fear.
Possible Historical Connections
Tracing the name and origins of the name bogeyman is a bit murky and there have been many ideas and theories put forward.
A few sources place the appearance of the word bogeyman in the English language from the Scottish word bogle, which means "ghost" or "hobgoblin" which dates to around 1505. Other sources will place the word bogeyman to around 1836 as another name for the Devil. It certainly seems to have become popular with the works of Scottish poets such as Robert Burns and Sir Walter Scott.
Another idea is that the word comes from the Middle English word bugge, meaning a "frightening specter." Other similar words to this are boggard, bogy, bugbear, the Welsh bwg, the Scots Gaelic bòcan and the German word bögge; all of these words refer to a goblin or frightening creatures.
Bog Men
This idea is a rather interesting source for the Bogeyman as a "boggy man." Bog men can be found periodically preserved in peat bogs. In these stories, the bog men arise from the dead much like zombies to attack the living.
Indonesian Pirates
The name bogeyman may come from the Bugis people who were pirates from Indonesia and Malaysia. Its likely that English and French sailor brought home stories of the bugis where it becomes anglicized to bogeymen. They would tell their children "if you're bad, the bugisman will come and get you!" Eventually, the word bugis changes into the word bogey. Etymologists tend to disagree on the Bugis being the source for the Bogeyman as the word and term had been in use long before the Europeons started exploring and colonizing Southeast Asia.
There's a claim that Bogeyman is a reference to Napoleon Bonaparte who had been nicknamed "Boney" by the British. He was used as a threat for British children of the time and that somewhere along the line, Boney becomes Boneyman and further becomes Bogeyman.
Snot Your Friend
The most interesting connection of the bogey man is the relationship of its name as a slang term for snot and boogers.
A Monster By Any Other Name….
Nearly every culture around the world has its own version of the bogeyman. Some faceless monster used to keep unruly children in line and from misbehaving.
There's a long list of them that can be given too.
Afghanistan – The Bala or Newanay Mama, which means "The Monster or Crazy Person", is used to scare children when they won't sleep or take their medicine.
Albania – In South Albania, there is the Katallani "the Catalan" a monster which relies on the historical Catalan occupation of the region centuries ago used to scare children. In South Italy, there is the Gogoli, "the Mongol" another historical use of the Golden Horde that is used to frighten children into behaving.
Algeria – The H'awouahoua is a chimerical monster made up of many different animal parts with eyes that are blobs of flaming spit and a coat made from the clothes of those children it eats.
Azerbaijan – A monster called Khokhan ("xoxan") is used for scaring children into behaving.
Bahamas – The "small man" is the name given to an entity who rides in a cart that pulls itself. He picks up any child found outside after sundown. Anyone taken by the small man becomes a small person and rides with the small man forever. The term "rollin' cart" has been used to scare children into behaving themselves.
Belgium – Oude Rode Ogen (Old Red Eyes) is known throughout the Flanders region, it is believed to have originated in Mechelen and is a cannibalistic shape-shifter that is able to change from a human to a black dog. Oude Rode Ogen later becomes a children's story in the 1900's called "The Nikker" who eats children that stay up past their bedtimes.
Belize – The Tata Duende is a small wrinkled goblin with a beard, no thumbs and backwards feet who wears a large brimmed hat. He is described as a protector of the forests and animals who scares children from going out to play at night or in the jungle.
Bosnia, Croatia, Herzegovina, Macedonia and Serbia – In these countries, the Bogeyman is called Babaroga. Baba means "old woman" and rogovi means "horns." So the name literally means "old woman with horns." The specifics of Babroga vary from household to household. In one household, Babaroga will take children and put them in her sack where she will take them to her cave to eat. In another household, she will take children, pulling them up through small holes in the ceiling.
Brazil – The "Bag Man," called "homem do saco" in Portuguese, "hombre de la bolsa," "hombre del costal" or "del saco" in Spanish is one such monster or man-like creature who is known for carrying off misbehaving children in a sack. There is also another very similar creature the "Bicho Papão" or Eating Beast who will carry off children. Bicho Papão is also known as Sarronco, the "Deep-Voiced Man". Another monster is the Cuca, a female humanoid with an alligator head. Parents will sing a lullaby to their children at night about how Cuca will come take them away if they don't go to sleep. Cuca appears as a character in Monteiro Lobato's Sítio do Picapau Amarelo book series that uses a lot of Brazilian folklore. The difference between Bicho Papão and the Bag Man is that the Bag Man comes during the day and Bicho Papão comes during the night.
Bulgaria – The Torbalan or "Man-with-a-sack" is the name of the local bogeyman. In some places, a dark, hairy ghost-like creature called a Talasam who lives in the shadows of barns or in attics is what will come to scare children into behaving.
Czech Republican – A creature known as the Bubak, a scarecrow is used to frighten children into behaving. It will hide along riverbanks, making a crying noise like an infant to draw victims to it.
Congo – The Dongola Miso or "Creature with Scary Eyes" is used to scare children into going to bed on time. It is also used to warn children and adults alike about the dangers of dealing with and speaking to strangers.
China – The Ou-Wu is a witch or scary looking woman who kidnaps children that misbehave. She is popular in the southern regions of China and Hong Kong. The term is the origin for "monster" and has become used as a synonym for ugly or hideous.
Cyprus – In the Cypriot dialect, Bogeyman is known asd Kkullas.
Denmark – Here, the Bogey Man is known as busseman or Bøhman and is known for hiding under the bed where it grabs children who won't sleep. Much like in the English language, the name has become a slang term for snot or nasal mucus.
England – In Yorkshire, children are warned that if they steal from orchards, they might get eaten by a fairy in the form of a giant caterpillar known as Awd Goggie. Another similar monster is "The Gooseberry Wife" who guards gooseberries on The Isle of Wight.
Egypt – The Abu Rigl Maslukha, "Man With Burnt/Skinned Leg," is a particularly scary story told by parents to children who misbehave. The Abu Rigl Maslukha is a monster who got burnt as a child as he wouldn't listen to his parents. He will grab children and cook them to eat.
Finland – Here, the Bogeyman is known as Mörkö. In the Moomin stories, the Mörkö or Groke is a frightening, dark blue and big ghost like creature.
France – Here the Bogeyman is called "le croque-mitaine" which means "The mitten-biter." Another translation of the name is "the hand-cruncher."
Georgia – In addition to a "Bag Man," there is also the "Bua" used by parents to scare children who have misbehaved. No real description of Bua is given and its suspected there's a link between it and the the Georgian word bu which means owl.
Germany – There is the black man or Der schwarze, called so for his preference to hiding in dark places like closets, under the bed or out in the forests. There is a children's game called Wer hat Angst vorm schwarzen Mann (Who is afraid of the Bogey Man). There is also an old traditional folk song "Es tanzt ein Bi-Ba-Butzemann in unserm Haus herum" that translates as: A Bi-Ba-Bogeyman dances around in our house. Another name for the Bogeyman is Buhmann or Butzemann. And finally there is also the Grossman.
Greece – The Baboulas is said to hide under the bed, though parents will tell stories of this creature in other ways to frighten children into behaving.
Guyana – The Jumbi is the name for the Bogeyman and like many other variations, it too lives in the dark, staying in closets and under the bed. It is used to scare children to eat their food so that they can defend themselves against him.
Haiti – A tall man, with legs two floors high is believed to walk around the towns at midnight, catching and eating those people who stay outside. He called Mètminwi which seems to be a contraction of the French "maître," for master and minwi, the French word minuit" for midnight. So his name translates to "Master of Midnight." There is also Tonton Macoute or Uncle Gunnysack who would trap misbehaving children and eat them for breakfast. The MVSN, a secret police force in Haiti used this myth as a form of control as many so called Tonton Macoutes were followers of Voodoo.
Hejaz, Saudi Arabia – The Dojairah and Umna al Ghola, which means "Our mother the Monster" is used to scare children when they misbehave or outside alone at night.
Hungary – Stories of the Mumus is used to scare children. There is also the Zsákos Ember, a man with a sack. A final monster is the Rézfaszú bagoly or "Copperpenis Owl" and whose description is that, a giant owl with a copper penis.
Iceland – The Grýla, is a female troll who would take misbehaving children and eat them during Christmas Eve. Fortunately, she has been dead for quite some time. She is the mother of the Yule Lads who are Iceland's version of Santa Claus.
India – There are a number of different names for the Bogeyman in India. In North India, the Bori Baba who carries a sack is used to frighten children. There is also the Chownki Daar, a night security guard who will come and take children away if they won't go to sleep. In South India there is the Rettai Kanna (the two-eyed one) or Poochaandi who used to threaten children in the state of Tamil Nadu. There is also the Buchadu or Boochodu is used similarly in the state of Andhra Pradesh. Bihar parents use the demon Bhakolwa for scaring children. In Karnataka, there is the demon Goggayya, the "terrible man," central Kerala has the Kokkachi who will take away disobedient children. More bogeymen like creatures are the Oochandi of South Kerala, the Gongo of West Coast India, a male ghost called Buva or Bagul Buva among the Marathi speaking people is used for scaring children and finally there is the Kaan Khowa used by Assamese parents who will eat children's ears if they don't go to sleep.
Indonesia – The Wewe Gombel is a ghost that kidnaps children who are abused by their parents. She takes them to her nest on top of a palm tree where she cares for the children until the parents realize what it is they have done. If the parents decide to change their ways, the Wewe Gombel will return the children. The Wewe Gombel's story originated with an event that took place Bukit Gombel, Semarang.
Iran – The Lulu is used in Persian culture to frighten children into behaving. The Lulu is also sometimes called the Lulu-Khorkhore or "bogeyman who eats everything up."
Iraq – There is the Saalua from ancient folklore. She is a half-witch, half-demon ghoul used by parents to scare their children. Saalua is mentioned in a story found in the 1001 Arabian Nights. She is known too in other Gulf countries.
Italy – The "L'uomo Nero" or The Black Man is used, he is a tall man wearing a heavy black coat and either a black hood or hat to hide his face. Alternately, he is a ghost with no legs. Parents are known for knocking under the table and pretending someone knocked on the door as they say: "Here comes l'uomo nero! He must know that there's a child here who doesn't want to drink his soup!" Unlike other monsters, L'uomo Nero doesn't actually harm or eat children, he just take them away to a strange, frightening place. There is a lullaby used with L'uomo Nero who keeps a child with him for a whole month. Black is also used as a pun in politics in Italy as the color is associated with fascism. Unfortunately it also has negative, derogatory racial puns and slurs associated with the color black. Other places in Italy, the name babau is used for the Bogeyman.
Japan – The Namahage are demons that warn children not to be lazy or cry. During the Namahage Sedo Matsuri or "Demon Mask Festival," villages wear demon masks pretending to be these spirits.
Korea – The Dokebi is a monster used against misbehaving children. Other variations to Dokebi are the Mangtae Younggam, an old man who carries a mesh sack to carry away kidnapped children in. Other places they have the Mangtae Halmum, an old woman with a mesh sack.
Macedonia – Aside from the Babroga, there is also the Strasilo (the "frightener") who comes out at night, hides under beds, in forests, caves and basements. It is said to grab and eat children.
Mexico – El Cucuy is an evil monster that hides under children's beds at night. He will kidnap and eat any child who disobeys their parents. He is described as being a small humanoid with glowing red eyes. Sometimes he is believed to have been a child who was a victim of violence that has come back to life.
Myanmar – The Pashu Gaung Phyat is used to threaten children with. The name means Malayu Headhunter. In Burmese, the Malays were called "Pashu," which may have come from Bajau or Bugis. Many ethnic groups in Eastern Malaysia were notorious for being headhunters right up until the 1970's with the Wa tribe.
Nepal – There is the "Hau-Guji" in Nepali. The Newars tell of an ape-like monster called Gurumapa who enjoys eating children. There is a story told of this creature found at Itum Bahal in the inner temple of Kathmandu.
Netherlands – The bogeyman is known by many names, some of these names are: Boeman, Boezeman, Boezehappert, Jan Haak, Mannetje met de haak, Bullebak, Boevent, Beukèl, Haantje Pik, Tenensnijder, Boelekerel, Nekker, Krolleman, Heintje Pik, Okkerman and so on. Many of these are known for hiding in the water. As Boeman, it is depicted as a creature that resembles a human, dressed all in black with sharp claws and fangs and will hide under the bed or in closets. It too will take those children who have misbehaved and won't go to sleep and lock them away in his basement for a period of time.
Norway – The Bogeyman is called Busemannen, much like the Boeman of the Netherlands, it is depicted as a creature that resembles a human, dressed all in black with sharp claws and fangs and will hide under the bed or in closets. It too will take those children who have misbehaved and won't go to sleep and lock them away in his basement for a period of time.
Pakistan – The Bhoot or Jin Baba is used by parents to scare children into behaving. This creature is a ghost Djinn. In other places it is known as Kathu Ki Maa.
Philippines – There are a number of different bogey man like monsters. The Pugot, Sipay, Mamu and Mumu. Among the Kapampangan people, there is the Mánguang Anak or Child-Snatcher.
Poland – Places like Silesia or Great Poland use the bebok (babok or bobok) to scare children into behaving. Another creature is the Hastrman, a scarecrow that much like the Czech Republican Babuk also hides along riverbanks, making noises like an infant to draw people to their doom.
Portugal – The Portuguese brought Bicho Papão (the Eating Beast) or Sarronco (Deep-Voiced Man) to Brazil. They also have an "homen do saco" or Bag Man. The difference between Bicho Papão and the Bag Man is that the Bag Man comes during the day and Bicho Papão comes during the night.
Quebec – In this province of Canada, the "Bonhomme Sept-Heures" or 7 O'clock Man is used to scare children into behaving if they won't go to bed or else he takes them to his cave to eat them.
Romania – The Bau-Bau is used by parents to scare children into behaving.
Russia – The Babay is said to hide under the bed. The Babay is described as an old man with a bag or a monster who will come take them away if they misbehave. Similarly spelled, is the Babayka who comes at night for misbehaving children.
Serbia – The Bauk is an animal-like creature from Serbian mythology, it is described as hiding in dark places such as holes or abandoned houses where it waits to grab and carry of its victim to eat. It can be scared away with light and noise. It is known for having a clumsy gait.
Singapore – The local bogey man stories here are of Ah Bu Neh Neh or Matah who will snatch up misbehaving children. Matah is a variation off the Malay word Mata-Mata which means spy or spies and is used as a nickname for the police.
Spain – El Cuco, El Coco or El Bolo, a shapeless figure or hairy monster who eats children that misbehave when they won't go to bed is used in place of the Bogeyman. Parent will sing lullabies or tell rhymes to their children about the dangers of refusing to go to sleep or else El Coco will come eat them. The nursery rhyme for El Coco is thought to have originated in the 17th century and has since changed over the years. El Coco has also traveled overseas to the Spanish-speaking Latin American countries. There is also the El roba-chicos or child-stealer who is used in many Spanish speaking countries. Incidentally, Coconuts received their name from El Cuco due their resemblance to the Spanish bogeyman. Another shapeless monster is El Ogro or Ogre that is also described as being hairy and will hide in closets and under beds where it will eat misbehaving children if they don't go to bed. There is also the El Sacamantecas or "Fat Extractor" who is used for scaring children into good behavior by killing people to take their fat.
Sri Lanka – The Sinhalese people tell stories of the Gonibilla, "the sack-kidnapper" who will come day or night to carry off misbehaving children.
Sweden – The Bogey man is known as the Monstret under sängen or "Monster under the bed."
Switzerland – The Bogeyman is called Böllima or Böögg and is an important figure in Springtime ceremonies as he or it symbolizes winter and death. In the Sechseläuten ceremony held in the city of Zürich, the effigies of Böögg are burnt.
Trinidad and Tobago – Many use folklore as a means of scaring misbehaving children into obey. The most common word used is the Jumbie. Many of their "Jumbies" are the Soucouyant, Lagahoo, La Diables and Papa Bois to name a few. The name Bogeyman will also be used in many urban areas. It can also be called "The Babooman."
Turkey – The Gulyabani is a gigantic and strange monster that scares both children and adults alike.
Ukraine – The Babay is also present here just as it is in Russia.
United Arab Emirates – The Om Al- Khadar wa Alleef, meaning Mother of green and leef "bark" is used to scare children. She take the appearance of a tall woman who long hair flows in the wind. She is often used by parents as a means of getting children to stay indoor after sunset and go to bed. What's interesting is that the Palm tree is used as the inspiration for this figure due to the scary sounds it can make when the wind blows, its height and how in the dark, it can resemble a woman.
United States – Aside from the classic Bogeyman, there is also the Jersey Devil used to scare travelers and the old British stories of Bloody Bones or Rawhead and even Tommy Rawhead told in the U.S. South. During the Cherokee Corn Festival, young men will wear caricature masks making fun of politicians and using them to scare children or chase after young women. This was known as a Booger Dance and the dancers are referred to as Booger Man. In areas of the Pacific Northwest, the bogey man will appear as a green fog. Other places the Bogeyman will scratch at windows, hide in closets or carry them off in a sack. Warts in some children's stories are said to be transmitted to someone by the Bogeyman. Among the Pennsylvania Dutch, the term "der Butzemann" is used for male scarecrows and female scarecrows are Butzefrau.
Yukon – In this province of Canada, the Quankus take and puts misbehaving children into a large sock, carrying them away at night. Quankus too is used by many parents to scare children into going to bed.
Posted in British, Celtic, Demon, Fear, Folk Lore, Ghost, Irish, Monster, Pirate, Punishment, Scottish, Shape-Shifter, Spirit, Undead
Bodach
Etymology – Scottish & Irish – "a boorish old man", Modern Scottish Gaelic – "old man"
In the Scottish Gaelic language, the word breaks down to "bod", meaning "penis" and its suffix "' –ach", that translates to mean "someone who has a penis."
Plural: Bodaich
Pronunciation: ˈbōdək, ˈbäd-
Historically, the word and name Bodach comes from the Scottish Gaelic term for an "old man" referring to a mature person. It had once been used as a derogatory term to refer to peasants and farmers (bothach) by the warrior class of the Scots. In more modern times, the term is used more affectionately then its former derogatory intent.
In Irish, the word bodach also means a churl or clown, referring to someone who was an old or churlish person, serf or peasant. There are some children's stories where the word bodach is translated as curmudgeon or the name Nod is used in its place.
In time, the word bodach found its way into the English language by the British, who used the word to refer to a mythological being or spirit much like a goblin, bugbear or bogeyman. Here the bodaich is used as a cautionary story for keeping misbehaving children in line. Behave or else the bodach will come down the chimney to take you away!
There are certain regions of Wales and Scotland where the term bodach is used for a type of imp or fairy. Frequently, this is one of the more mischievous, shape-shifting types.
Omen Of Death
In Walter Scott's Waverley (1814), a much more formidable form of the bodach as the bodach glas (the Dark Grey Man) is a harbinger of death.
While not used very often, bodaich do appear from time to time in literature. The bodach has altered a bit of its appearance into modern literature. In Dungeons &Dragons, the name has a minor spelling change to bodak and becomes an undead entity, largely black in color. The same description of black, shadowy creatures is used in Dean Koontz Odd series where they appear at different sites just before a disaster takes place. The same type of shadowy creatures appears in the movie "The Eye." Even W. B. Yeats make mention of a bodach in his prose The Hour-Glass where a bodach appears to the character, the Fool and attempts to trick him out his money with a riddle.
Posted in British, Celtic, Death, Fairy, Folk Lore, Irish, Monster, Punishment, Scottish, Shape-Shifter, Spirit
Nephele
Ancient Greek Spelling: Νεφελη
Alternate Spellings: Nefeli
Etymology – From the Greek word: nephos, meaning "cloud" or "cloudy." The latinized spelling is nubes.
Pronunciation: NEF-eh-lee
Nephele is an interesting character found in Greek Mythology. We first hear of her in the story of Ixion. Yes, that Ixion who is the first murderer in Greek Myths; who also puts some unwanted moves on Zeus' wife Hera. When Hera complained, Zeus fashioned a cloud in Hera's likeness in order to catch Ixion in the act.
Cloudy Beginnings
As previously mentioned in the story of Ixion, Nephele is the name of the cloud that Zeus fashions in Hera's likeness in order to catch Ixion in the act of some unwanted moves.
Mother Of The Centaurs
Nephele is the mother of the Centaurs when she is raped by Ixion who thought she was the goddess Hera. She either gives birth to Centaurus, who is an ugly deformed child that goes on to be the progenitor of the centaurs or Nephele gives birth directly to the centaurs as a race. Either way, Ixion and Nephele do ultimately sire the centaur race.
In the version of the story where Ixion is bound to a flaming wheel in Tartarus, the resulting centaurs that are born were left on Mount Pelion where the Centaur-God Chiron and his daughters took them in to raise. In this lineage, the Centaurs are sometimes referred to as the Ixionidae or as Nubigenae, meaning cloud-born and connecting them to Nephele as their mother.
Hercules Versus The Centaurs
In one of many of Hercules adventures, he does battle against the Centaurs. Nephele is commented by a Diodorus Siculus in his Library of History, to have sent a heavy rain to make the ground more treacherous for those who relied on two legs to walk instead of four like her centaur children.
Goddess In Her Own Right
Nephele, when she is acknowledged as having a name in the Greek Myths, is mentioned as being a Cloud Nymph and like all Nymphs, they are minor goddesses. While being forces and personifications of nature, Nymphs were not as powerful as the other major Greek Deities. Given the story with how Nephele helped her centaur children and later two more children of hers, Phrixus and Helle, she has to have had some power and significance.
Disputing Goddess-hood
Because of her origins in the story of Ixion, Nephele is often seen as being a clone and a copy of the goddess Hera.
It's just possible, that like Chiron, as Greek culture and influence spread of the twelve major Olympian gods, that Nephele's status and power as a goddess in her own right diminished to her being a Nymph and Clone of Hera.
The First Wife Of Athamas
After the incident involving her with Ixion, there becomes a problem over a matter of a lot of confusion not only with Nephele herself but the other Olympian gods. In the stories where Nephele is a clone of Hera, there is a huge case of mistaken identity as she was constantly mistaken for Zeus' wife. Adding to this, Nephele would hide in corners where she would constantly break out into tears. This didn't work as any of the Gods passing by would keep asking her what the matter was, thinking she was Hera.
Fed up with this, Zeus eventually married Nephele off to the Boeotian King, Athamas in order to be rid of her. All went well until the birth of her two children, Phrixus and Helle when she falls into another state of depression and would turn into a raining cloud.
In turn, Athamas was fed up and started having an affair with Ino, the sister of Semele whom Zeus was also having a current affair with. Eventually, Athamas divorced Nephele for Ino and the Cloud Nymph returned to Olympus.
Phrixus And Helle
With Athamas, Nephele is the mother of the twins, Phrixus and Helle. There is a third child, Makistos, though it is with the twins who have more of a place in myth and legends.
Because Athamas had divorced and remarried, Phrixus and Helle found themselves with a stepmother who hated them and devised a plan in order to get rid of the two.
This plan of Ino's involved roasting all of the town's crop seeds so they wouldn't grow. The resulting famine caused all of the farmers to go running scared, seeking out the help of a nearby oracle. Unknown to the Farmers and others, Ino had already bribed the men at the Oracle to tell the farmers that they needed to sacrifice Phrixus.
Before the farmers could follow through on the sacrifice, Phrixus and Helle were rescued by a flying golden ram sent by their mother Nephele.
The twins were told not to look down towards the Earth on their flight from Boeotia. Unfortunately, Helle did look down and fell off the ram into the Hellespont, a narrow strait near Turkey connecting the Aegean Sea with the Sea of Marmara. Helespont incidentally is named after Helle for this is where she is to have drowned.
Phrixus survived the flight and made it to Colchis where King Aeetes took him in and treated him fondly, even so far as to give his daughter Chalciope in marriage to him. By way of thanks, Phrixus gave Aeetes the Golden Fleece off the ram. Aeetess hung the Golden Fleece from a tree in his kingdom. This is the same Golden Fleece that Jason, leader of the Argonauts would later come and take.
Ancestor To The Theban Dynasty
When researching the story of Cadmus, I came across a reference to the hero's divine lineage.
Cadmus and all of his siblings are descendants, grandchildren even through their mother, Telephassa's side of Nilus, the god of the Nile and Nephele.
Posted in Centaur, Clone - Doppleganger, Cloud, Deity, Divorce, Goat, Greek, Grief, Mother/Motherhood, Nature, Nymph, Queen, Rain, Rape, Sky, Twins


Martha has trouble walking up the stairs now. She takes each step one at a time, slowly. Every night she makes the long walk up the stairs to lay beside our bed.
When I got out of bed this morning I stepped on a wet spot. Did I spill a glass of water? No, it was Martha. She peed on the carpet. She didn't bark to be let out.
I thought she was dying. The beginning of the end.
The veterinarian said she has a bladder infection. Martha has to take medicine with her dog food. One pill in the morning and one pill at night for twenty days.
I probably wouldn't have cried if the veterinarian hospital wasn't the same one I took Pooh's body to when he died last year on April 1st. The same hospital I picked up Pooh's ashes in a little box, in a small bag.
Pooh was a writer. He had his own blog at thecatwhowrites.com. Harper, the kitten, is the writer there now. Sometimes Martha guest posts.
Please click here if you would like to make a comment, or just scroll to the bottom of the post on the blog.
This month I am sharing small slices of my everyday life at two writing teachers. com. Please click on the orange slice to read other March writers. So many stories.
My puppy is smarter than I am and I don't want to admit it.
Is it time to say good-bye to our dog Martha?


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(Credit: Jim Marshall)
Jack Whatley
The Beatles, Hendrix, Led Zeppelin and more: The life and times of pioneering rock photographer Jim Marshall
"My photographs are my children." — Jim Marshall
One of the most esteemed rock photographers of his generation, few people behind the lens are as suitable equipped to say "I was there" as Jim Marshall. Throughout his pivotal and illustrious career, Marshall became not only one of the better music photographers around, but also the preferred photography for musicians. Famously, Marshall was the only snapper allowed backstage at The Beatles final ever gig, but he also photographed everyone from The Rolling Stones to Jimi Hendrix, Johnny Cash and Led Zeppelin.
Born in Chicago, Illinois, Marshall moved to San Francisco when he was just two-years-old and first picked up a camera when he was in high school, purchasing his own not long after. Immediately bitten by the bug, Marshall began doing what any sensible teen would do during the years of the counterculture revolution; he headed to the streets of San Francisco, armed with his camera, and began taking as many pictures as he could. It was here that Jim Marshall's name would start to carry some weight.
Skulking around the smoky streets of the Golden Gate City in the mid-to-late sixties was a pastime that many of us wish we could be a part of. The city was positively brimming with revolutionary rock ideas, and, following on from the Beat generation, the neighbourhoods hummed with creative possibility.
As Beatlemania had subsided and a new sound was beginning to find the airwaves, Marshall was there to catch many great acts in their infancy and assert himself as the only photographer worthy of fame.
Stunning performers from the area, such as The Grateful Dead, the Grace Slick-led band Jefferson Airplane and the esteemed singer Janis Joplin were all photographed by Marshall at the beginning of their ascendencies. He also understood jazz's power and snapped both John Coltrane and Thelonious Monk as they made their way through the city.
While other photographers understood the appeal of rock music and how it offered a glimpse into a new generation of kids, they preferred to stay aloof from the scene and their subjects; however, Marshall immersed himself within the grime and grit of the entire movement. In fact, he wasn't just a photographer, he was part of the scene itself and a star attraction of it.
Jimi Hendrix and The Experience by Jim Marshall
Brina Jones and Jimi Hendrix by Jim Marshall
In truth though, Marshall was a bit wild himself. The photographer is known for being at one with the rock stars and that's likely because he behaved in much the same fashion. "I've been busted a few times for drugs, guns, assault with a deadly weapon," he admitted in a documentary about his life that aired just before his death in 2010. "I shot a guy once. It got out of control … It's just part of who I am." It would ultimately de-rail his career too as the swathe of cocaine users in the seventies included Marshall and cast him out to sea.
That was a notion confirmed when, in 1966, Marshall was invited to be the only photographer for The Beatles final ever paid performance. "You couldn't hear shit," he said later of the short show. "It was right out of A Hard Day's Night." The Beatles were, and quite possibly still are, the biggest band in the world. But it was Marshall's work with the hard rock groups that emerged after Beatlemania had begun to subside that really catapulted him into fame and led Annie Leibowitz to call him "the rock 'n' roll photographer."
Whether it was his shot of Jimi Hendrix setting fire to his Fender on stage at Monterey pop festival in 1967, his candid images of Janis Joplin backstage at San Francisco's Winterland Ballroom, cuddling a bottle of Southern Comfort, the moment he captured Johnny Cash's middle finger "for the warden" in '69, or indeed the months he spent on "the pharmaceutical tour" with The Rolling Stones as part of his photo journal for Life magazine — Jim Marshall had lived and breathed it all.
Jefferson Airplane by Jim Marshall
Led Zeppelin by Jim Marshall
By the beginning of the seventies, having completed his role as head-photographer for Woodstock, Marshall had become the most widely adored photographer of his time.
He was the snapper du jour and was wanted by every establishment not only for his images, clear artistic eye and ability to render the very essence of his subjects with the click of a button, but for his unadulterated access.
Marshall had quickly become not only the photographer of the rock scene with his portfolio packed with stars like Brian Jones, Jim Morrison, Otis Redding and Duane Allman, but he was a pillar of that scene too. He had been assimilated into the same crazy lifestyle, unstoppable partying and unfathomable debauchery because of his no-nonsense approach and refusal to bow down to any pop music primadonna, once famously walking out on Barbara Streisand for being a diva.
Jim Marshall was a rare breed. An artist who spent his life showcasing the men and women behind the music, capturing iconic images of Bob Dylan, Guns N Roses, Santana and all the above, who became at one with the very subject he was trying to capture. He was not only the foreword in immersive photography but helped to define the very parameters of music photography as we know it.
As the great man said himself: "When I'm photographing people, I don't like to give any direction. There are no hair people fussing around, no make-up artists. I'm like a reporter, only with a camera; I react to my subject in their environment, and if it's going well, I get so immersed in it that I become one with the camera." It is something that is expertly captured within Jim Marshall: Show me the Picture, the latest book that chronicles Marshall's storied life. Written by Amelia Davis, it retells the very visceral life of the photographer, as well as including essays from his contemporaries and analysing his legacy.
Simply put, there will never be another Jim Marshall.
Keith Richards by Jim Marshall
Mick Jagger by Jim Marshall
The Rolling Stones by Jim Marshall
Credit: Jim Marshall

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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Resources for asylum-seekers in the United States
This Land is Your Land
Burundian mother stands out in male-dominated carpentry class in Tanzania
Unable to afford her own furniture, Burundian refugee decides to take up carpentry classes and excels at it.
By Winnie Itaeli Kweka in Nduta Camp, Tanzania | 28 March 2018
Wood shavings fall softly to the ground as Maritha moves a plane swiftly over a plank of wood. Her brow is furrowed in deep concentration as she works in the carpentry training centre in Nduta camp, Tanzania.
As one of only two women in a class of 30 students, the 20-year-old clearly stands out.
"I always wanted to be a teacher," she says, taking a break from the lesson. "But the conflict back home forced me to abandon my studies and escape."
Maritha fled to Tanzania in 2016 when political turmoil in Burundi resulted in mounting insecurity across the country. Faced with a new life in the camp, she tried to find work so that she could take care of her young son. She was not successful. Her frustrations increased when she realized that she couldn't even afford the furniture sold in the camp.
"I decided to take matters into my own hands – I was going to become a carpenter."
"I decided to take matters into my own hands – I was going to become a carpenter."
She signed up for carpentry classes at the vocational skills training centre funded by UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency and managed by its partner agency, Plan International.
She recalls how people tried to dissuade her and laughed at her for wanting to train in a male dominated sector.
"People laughed at me when I signed up," she notes wryly. "They said carpentry is a man's job and I couldn't do it."
But she was undeterred and remained determined to learn the craft.
"People laughed at me...they said carpentry is a man's job and I couldn't do it."
"This is an unusual thing especially here in the camp, to find women exploring vocations that are regarded as male professions," explains Takaaki Miura, UNHCR's Associate Livelihood Officer.
She has also proved to be a fast learner and is among the top students in her class.
"She is one of my most promising students," says Ndikumana Pierre, one of the vocational trainers. "She learns fast and makes an effort to understand everything in class."
Juggling motherhood with her new found passion has not been easy though, especially when her son falls ill.
"I can't leave him alone at home because my husband also works. When he is sick, I can't attend classes," she adds.
Despite these challenges, she remains undeterred. She is one of less than ten women interested in learning and exploring this opportunity since the carpentry programme started in the three camps in Tanzania.
"She is one of my most promising students."
Now in its second year, the programme has already trained 59 men who've graduated from Nduta and Mtendeli camps. The training runs for six months with classes five days a week. After successfully completing the course, students form groups of five and receive start-up kits and US$49 worth of carpentry tools and materials to set up their own businesses.
"The programme aims to provide the students with economic independence," says Jerry Mlembwa, the Youth Coordinator of Plan International. "They are able to meet their basic needs."
With a population of 110,000 refugees, Nduta camp has a potential market for quality goods and services in high demand like furniture.
"This is why we offer skills training for youth like Maritha who are so keen to learn," explains UNHCR's Miura.
Other livelihood programmes include bread making, hairdressing, tailoring, catering, phone repairs and ICT. However, job opportunities for refugees are very few limited due to lack of freedom of movement, right to work and access to financial services. UNHCR continues to advocate for policy change while also supporting vocational and business trainings across the camps in Tanzania.
"The programme aims to provide the students with economic independence."
Maritha's class, which has 60 men, will graduate in a few weeks. She is hopeful that after graduating she will finally have the economic independence she has been yearning for.
"I will be able to buy food and clothes for my child," she says.
She also sees its potential to not only make a huge difference for her and her family but for other refugees.
"I want to not only make my own furniture and have a source of income but to teach other refugees," she adds.
Refugee Para athletes relish chance to compete at global level
Burundian taekwondo athlete set to make his mark at Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games
Six athletes to make up Refugee Paralympic Team at Tokyo Games
Global photo project shows power of football during displacement
Hope and opportunity for refugee students in Botswana
UNHCR appeals for Mozambicans fleeing violence to be given access to asylum in Tanzania


Excellent class for the student with no prior Spanish experience. Learn useful phrases, not grammar, so you can decipher menus, order food, purchase transportation tickets, ask for directions, and more. This class can be taken alone or as a simultaneous complement to Spanish 1 or 2.


Every 3rd Friday of each month we have our Youth Service. We meet at: Iglesia Oasis 17508 Hercules St. #8 Hesperia, CA at 7pm. Our Services are conducted in english. We have Praise & Worship led by youth psalmist Herman Vindas Jr. and His Band. There is also a time to pray for the needs of the youth. We have an anointed speaker who will minister to the youth and pray for them after the service, if they wish. If you don't have a home church and would like to come, feel free to visit us and check us out! 🙂 We would love to meet you. If you need further information, call us at 760-948-5260 and leave a message, we will get back to you as soon as possible.


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Game Of Thrones star Max von Sydow dies aged 90
French actor Max von Sydow has died aged 90, his agent Jean Diamond has said.
The movie star was found dead at his home in France on Sunday.
A statement which announced his death read: "It is with a broken heart and with infinite sadness that we have the extreme pain of announcing the departure of Max von Sydow, March 8, 2020."
The actor made his mark on the entertainment spheres with his starring roles including Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Game Of Thrones, The Exorcist and Extremely Loud And Incredibly Close.
Ben Cooper dead at 86 – Johnny Guitar star dies after long illness
During his high-flying acting career, the Star Wars: The Force Awakens star appeared in more than 100 film and TV titles.
His long career was complemented by his two Academy Awards nominations for his roles in Pelle the Conqueror in 1987 and Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close in 2011.
The major star made his last TV appearance in the global phenomenon Game Of Thrones as the Three-Eyed Raven.
He joined the star-studded cast – including Kit Harington and Emilia Clarke – in 2016.
His last ever film was 2017 flick Kursk which was loosely based on a submarine accident.
Before his film breakthrough, the actor first found himself in the acting spheres by starring on stage at the theatre.
Max first sky-rocketed to fame in his 20s when he secured roles in the Ingmar Bergman trio of films The Seventh Seal, Wild Strawberries and The Magician.
The actor was originally born in Sweden but went onto become a French citizen where he lived until he died.
Tags Max von Sydow
'World's hottest mom', 43, who's mistaken for 19-year-old daughter's sister overwhelmed at 'having so many eyes' on her – The Sun
Phillip Schofield's daughter hails 'queen' mum after supporting his coming out


A postcard from Murmansk, Russia, sent by postcrosser Masha for lighthouse or cathedral tag in postcrossing forum.
The postcard shows the Murmansk Lighthouse.
At the back, Masha affixed four stamps, where one of them is a lighthouse stamp also! A special cancel was applied featuring a ship, and this also matches one of the stamps which shows a ship! The postmark date is 11 June 2013. Thank you very much Masha!


11 Trainings that will positively change your life as a Network Marketer. There has never been so much concentrated knowledge in online training. No BLAH BLAH but tough facts, sensational tips and incredibly easy approaches for your maximum success in network marketing!
Tthere are so many theoreticians right now! What is not promised, shown and prophesied? But in reality, these self-proclaimed gurus have never built a sustainable network for themselves!
Harald Psaridis has proven over 30 years that he is THE Net Worth Marketing Leader Number 1!


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Human Being, 002_Colorado Springs, CO, 2000
Human Being, 002_Colorado Springs, CO, 2000 quantity
*Anthropological Descriptions by J. Michael Hoffman, MD, Phd
In October of 1999 Andrea had just moved to Colorado after a lifetime on the east coast. She left behind the places and geography that was familiar to her. Above all, she left behind all the things she had chosen to photograph. It was an unfathomable landscape. In some sense, she felt unable to see.
In the midst of these adjustments, Modica read the following headline in the local newspaper: "Hundreds of Skeletons Found at State Hospital." She began to experience a feeling she often has in the presence of a possible new subject. She calls it lust because she can't think of another word to describe the mixture of desire, anticipation, and fear that the possibility of a photograph inspires.
According to the newspaper article, a graveyard had been unearthed on the grounds of the Colorado Mental Health Institute. It was the second time this had occurred. In 1992, the first graveyard was discovered during an excavation conducted by prison inmates, under the supervision of county and state of officials. They were breaking ground for an addition to the hospital for the criminally insane. A century ago, the facility was called the Colorado Insane Asylum, and the people who were buried on these grounds were those whose bodies had gone unclaimed and their burials unrecorded. They were likely buried there to save money because the city charged for burial in its cemetery. As Andrea read the article, she became increasingly preoccupied with who these people were. Michael Hoffman, a forensic anthropologist at Colorado College, who is studying the remains, offered the beginning of an answer. They were mostly males, and many of them had suffered from syphilis, a disease whose complications can include dementia and paralysis. It made sense they would have ended up at the asylum or gone unclaimed after their deaths as a result of anonymity or family shame. To the anthropologist, however, the bones told much more, about lives that were difficult, dangerous, and full of pain. Andrea imagined their lives as cowboys and prospectors; imagined their labor, and their whorehouse pleasures. In her mind, they were very far from home. She wanted to see them.
She was taken to a locked room, lined with long cardboard boxes, each filled with the meticulously cleaned and catalogued remains of a single human being. Within each box lay a smaller box containing the skull of the person. Some of the skulls were nearly intact. A few had been taped or glued back together by Professor Hoffman and his students. These objects, with their dark hollows, seemed to Andrea to be reliquaries, memorial vessels.
Professor Hoffman allowed Modica to spend the better part of a year in his laboratory. She worked with her 8 x 10 camera and available light, from a row of windows and overhead fluorescent fixtures.
"It seemed right to me that the skulls should be set on their boxes, that they should not be removed from the context in which I had encountered them and that ordinary cardboard should form their pedestals. It took me a long time to grasp fully what was in front of me. I grew up in a Catholic culture in which viewing and being in the presence of the dead at wakes was expected, and I had spent considerable time looking at skeletal remains in the catacombs of Rome and Palermo. This was familiar territory. And yet most of the early pictures I made in Dr. Hoffman's lab were disappointing, pictures a tourist might take. The more time I spent with these objects, however, the more their individuality began to assert itself. Paradoxically, the skulls became more human, more moving as my photographs became more formal, more precise. Or perhaps it was the other way around."


Fabian Escalante, the former head the Cuban state security agency, Departamento de Seguridad del Estado (DSE), has identified some persons of interest in connection with JFK's assassination.
In his book JFK: The Cuba Files, Escalante identifies people whom his agency suspected were involved in the death of the president.
Herminio Diaz (a.k.a. Herminito, CIA Personality File 201-203040), who was identified by another anti-Castro Cuban as a second shooter in Dealey Plaza.
Antonio Veciana (AMSHALE-1), linked to both Phillips and Guillermo Ruiz, a Cuban official who saw and talked to Oswald at the consulate in Mexico City.
Victor Espinosa Hernandez (a.k.a. Papucho, AMHINT-25), who bore close resemblance to one of the Cubans who visited Sylvia Odio with Oswald (or his double) and had knowledge of the AM/LASH plot.
(6) and two requests of approval of Espinosa Hernandez for investigative action and (7) provisional operational approval [POA].
"The CIA can neither confirm nor deny the existence or nonexistence" of JFK-related records in the debriefing of Cuban defector Florentino Aspillaga, known by the code name TOUCHDOWN.
Aspillaga, whose whereabouts are unknown, told a curious story about Castro´s apparent foreknowledge of the assassination, recounted in Brian Latell's book Castro´s Secrets.
When was Oswald in Mexico City? Is this where Oswald was suppose to be in Mexico in October when Ann Goodpasture said she was aware of a tape recording of Oswald, but never heard the tape, and the CIA handed that tape over to the FBI but for some reason it magically disappeared?
Oswald was not in Mexico.
I completely agree with Cuba's findings on David Morales, it's no longer a secret my father had his photo, The live recorded testimony and phone conversation of Rudy Junco has confirmed that. As for Antonio Veciana's involvement, I don't believe he was.
I never read Brian's book, Castro's Secrets, to me, I believe the book would be full of propaganda just to sell a book. I already knew about Castro having foreknowledge of Kennedy's assassination days prior to it happening which gave Castro the time to write the four hour speech he gave the after Kennedy's assassination, and that was to save his country from possible retaliation. This was confirmed partly on tape, and during a brief and private conversation I had with Luis Posada who was very much prevey to CIA's intel.
I also asked Luis if he believed Castro was involved with Kennedy's assassination, and what he said shocked me, on and off tape. He didn't reply as every other anti-Castro Cuban in Miami blaming Fidel. Luis said, "I don't think so" on tape, and off tape he said, "I wish I could tell you Castro was involved but I can't." He knew that his number one nemesis was not involved, and he did elaborate on Castro having knowledge of it.
Oswald was in Mexico City at least on September 27, 1963, since he filed a visa application and both his photo and signature are authentic. The phone of the Cuban Consulate appears in his notebook precisely because the Mexican employee at the Cuban consulate gave it to him for further proceedings (he should call back since his visa was pending). There is also no doubt that he was impersonated by phone on September 28 and October 1. There is no tape, but the transcripts are available and demonstrate an impostor made the calls.
On the other hand, Castro couldn´t have any foreknowledge of the assassination since he didn´t have any link to Oswald. What Posada could elaborate about that is pure speculation. By that time Posada was in the U.S. Army. Thereafter, his role in the CIA was simply to inform about the Cuban exile´s belligerent groups JURE and RECE.
Hey Scott! Nice to see you posting here.
I agree with you and I have to add that Castro had his own intelligence people all over South Florida (and probably still does to this day). Consider this, If "rogue" US intelligence assets were involved and this group included "rogue" anti-Casto Cubans then it is likely that Castro's foreknowledge came from his own intelligence apparatus. Unfortunately for us, as head of Cuba's security forces, Escalante's story can't be trusted any more than Dulles or Helms' stories would.
If Castro would have had any foreknowledge of the assassination, he would have reported it to JFK in the midst of the accommodation process started before the deed. He pragmatically did it to Reagan in 1984, and just consider that Reagan was for him the worst American president ever.
I have attached a website link below that includes information on the Nassau conference. For example, certain transcripts of the meetings your husband attended are provided within.
Hi my name is Peter Sheldon. I would love to meet Mr. Fabian Escalante. Would you be able to furnish any kind of contact information on Fabian! I am hoping because of his influence in Cuba that he could shed some light on Herminio Diaz Garcia. My uncle Robert James Sheldon was assassinated at the old US Embassy facing Armas Square on 6/18/51. You see Herminio was a person of interest. My uncle was a Marine Embassy Embassy Guard and military operative for the CIA. I've been told that Fidel Castro personally sent his four man assassin squad to take out Robert. The same woman, Naty Reveulta, who Robert was dealing with I was in email correspondence with her several years ago.
Any information on the death of Robert would be greatly appreciated. The CIA is keeping everything about the incident very close to their chest.
I find hilarious that Castro must have had foreknowledge of the assassination for writing a four-hour speech. For doing that the day after, Castro needed only the morning hours, as usual.
Of course he immediately realized that the CIA and other powers that be would put the blame on him, but his speeches (on November 23 and 27) went further and established a logical path to conspiracy on factual grounds, above all the use of a rifle with telescopic sight for firing against a mobile target. He emphatically advocated for a deep investigation on a conspiracy, which is the best evidence of no foreknowledge: why could he insist and insist in a conspiracy, taking the risk of being discovered as someone with foreknowledge about the deed?
Don't be surprised if the name Herminio Diaz is confirmed someday as an actual shooter firing upon the presidential limousine.
Given the trajectory angle of a suspected shooter from the western edge of the 6th floor, who according to an eyewitness was indeed "dark complected", he could be responsible for producing the "Harper" remnant of the late president's skull fragment found a day later on that same trajectory path.
Senor Diaz, if you are still alive, it's never too late to come clean amigo.
Unfortunately, Herminio was killed on May 29, 1966, during a raid against Castro in Havana. Precisely one of the survivors, Tony Cuesta, is the original source of Herminio´s role in the JFK assassination. Herminio himself would have told Cuesta about it just before the raid, aimed to deploy Herminio and one companion in Fifth Avenue for shooting at Castro, who used to take this route.
Appreciate the update/clarification, Nano Fortes, enjoy your day. Cheers!
Herminio Diaz Garcia was shot and killed on May 29, 1966 in Cuba during an attempted assassination of Fidel Castro. Cuban forces killed him and another plotter and wounded others who were taken prisoner, one being Tony Cuesta.
Interesting to note that Fabian Esclante, Arturo Rodriguez and Carlos Lechuga met with a group of JFK historians on Dec 7-9, 1995 in Nassau, Bahamas. Escalante told the group that the original source of the CIA's information that Kennedy had "a plan to dialogue with Cuba" was none other than Henry Cabot Lodge, who learned of JFK's consideration of a détente with Cuba as early as December 1962, half a year before Lodge was appointed ambassador to Vietnam. When CIA operative Felipe Vidal Santiago informed the Miami exile community of Kennedy's plans, Escalante said "it was almost like a bomb in those meetings," infuriating the exiles against a president they already hated because of of what they regarded as his betrayal of their cause at the Bay of Pigs.
Excellent posts on an aspect I'm not well read on. Thanks to all.
I must say I've been of the opinion for years that it would have been stupid for Castro to have authorized the hit and I don't consider him stupid. If he did and it was found out/exposed the right wing/military would have had the excuse and National backing he obviously knew they desired for a Cuban invasion and overthrow of his regime.


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Debut Album Review: Duran Duran – Self-titled
The debut album review series continues with Duran Duran's first release, the self-titled album from 1981.
Duran Duran didn't exactly explode on the music scene, at least in the United States, after releasing their debut album in 1981 but within two years, after their sophomore album Rio, the band's first album Duran Duran would finally hit the US charts.
But by then Duran Duran was a household name. I was also told by two classmates (back then) the Fab Five would replace the Fab 3 of Rush while teen and tween girls everywhere eventually competed on who would marry who in the band (according to my wife).
Nonetheless, the eponymous Duran Duran album did well in the band's homeland reaching #3 in the United Kingdom and eventually hitting platinum status. The re-release of Duran Duran's first album in 1983 for American audiences propelled it to the Top 10 cementing several hits and cult favorites.
Eventually though the fame and fortune wore thin and the classic line-up of singer Simon Le Bon, keyboardist and co-founder Nick Rhodes, bassist and co-founder John Taylor, drummer Roger Taylor and guitarist Andy Taylor would dissolve in just a short five years. Big surprise. But an even bigger surprise is Duran Duran never broke up as Le Bon, Rhodes and John Taylor carried on through the thin years of the 1990s (Taylor eventually left in 1997) before the gang got back together in 2001 and today four of the five (Andy Taylor left in 2006) remain and arguably nearly as popular as ever.
Forty years later, Duran Duran the band draws from Duran Duran the album to fill out the concert setlist and radio keeps the early years alive.
Duran Duran First Album Review
Right away, you know a new decade in music has begun. "Girls on Film" opens with the hallmark camera shudder opening and closing before the skipping drum beat and finally the bass starts rolling and the guitar chimes in. Things get even better with the galactic sounding "Planet Earth" a well-crafted song with a stellar bass line and Rhodes keyboard work in full display.
A heavier use of the guitar highlights "Anyone Out There" along with a quirky, near danceable beat. The bass and guitar feed in lock-step working as one. "To the Shore" takes a vastly different approach than the first three tracks. Slowed way down and cutting edge this one sounds like Depeche Mode at times, heavy on the synths with this sinister billowing effect, and Le Bon's British accent breaking free, just a bit, makes this one a lost gem. "Careless Memories" closes the first half of the album by bringing back the quicker pace of the opening songs but with a bit more edge and a rock feel.
Fun Fact: The 1983 re-release in the United States replaced "To the Shore" with the stand-alone single "Is There Something I Should Know?" while renaming "Anyone Out There" to "Is There Anyone Out There" and "Night Boat" to "(Waiting for the) Night Boat."
The second half of Duran Duran's first album starts of like a low budget horror film with "Night Boat" as Rhodes clearly enjoys implementing a variety of unearthly keyboard sounds. The "Waiting for the Night Boat" chorus repeats a bit much, but a lot going on instrumentally. Unfortunately Andy Taylor's guitar work sounds compulsory and if not for the current embrace of 80s culture this one would seem somewhat dated.
"Sound of Thunder" doesn't have a lot going for it. A decent song but the low-mark of the album despite some interesting synth work and a better focus on the melody at the midway point. "Friends of Mine" brings a return to the whimsical in what has become a favorite among the Duran Duran faithful in the longest song off their debut album. Upbeat and palatable, everyone seems to have their chance to shine even if Andy Taylor doesn't make much of an entrance until the final bars. "Tel Aviv" kind of sums up the album with just a few sounds already heard with violins built in (I assume a la Rhodes' handiwork) in this Duran Duran instrumental, yes instrumental, that gives Taylor some room to stretch on the fretboard but this one, totally out of the blue, has Rhodes putting his stamp on his creation.
Duran Duran's first album already sounds like a veteran band with multiple releases in their discography. Though the "kids" of the day probably had no comprehension of this, Duran Duran not only nails it on their first release but manage to prevent the proverbial flash in a pan that so many others have flamed out on.
Debut Album Grade: A-
Overall Grade: B+
Duran Duran Debut Album Songs:
Anyone Out There
To The Shore
Night Boat
Sound of Thunder
More Debut Album Reviews
Gin Blossoms – Dusted
Styx – Self-titled
March 16, 2021 July 10, 2021 Drewalbum review, debut album, Duran Duran
11 thoughts on "Debut Album Review: Duran Duran – Self-titled"
2loud2oldmusic says:
Girls on Film was such a killer track and that video was one I'd stop and watch every time it came on. I need to get this on vinyl as I don't have and I need it. Great review.
it's very hard to find. I was just looking for it but I found whats available is expensive. thanks for reading!!
btw, if the beginning sounded weird it's because somehow my intro paragraph got cut out. fixed now.
ok, it's been completely updated now. I swear Wordress has some real funky issues sometimes.
Ha! Yes, the new editing kind of sucks.
yes! that's exactly what happened.
J. says:
That opening salvo is just brilliant… out of the gate sounding assured and outrageously confident. I really like Andy Taylor's work when he gets to flex a bit… I also think Johnny Taylor really locks in on some grooves here, too.
his bass was really remarkable listening to this again for the first time.
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BuriedOnMars says:
My wife has this in the collection. I really did their bass player.
very underrated I think.
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Yacht shell door, installed on the lower side of any vessel or recreational yacht, is a platform or a door with sophisticated aesthetics used for loading goods or deployment of a life boat, life rafts, or any special cargo to be carried or stored on the yacht. Yacht shell doors are available with various type of opening, such as downward opening, simple hinged upward opening, pantograph side hinged, and roto-translating hinged upward opening. Yacht shell doors are usually made of stainless steel, steel, or aluminum. Yacht shell doors can be hydraulically or electrically driven. Yacht shell doors offer additional possibilities to the vessel, such as recreational activities, tender storage, and others. Yacht shell doors are very reliable under uncertain weather conditions (high tides). Hence, these factors are expected to drive the demand for yacht shell doors and replace the need of hatches.
Yacht Shell Doors: Market Drivers and Challenges: The global yacht shell doors market grows lateral to the shipbuilding or marine industry. The global fleet of vessels has been estimated around 1.8 billion by the end of FY2016, and it is expected to grow at a healthy rate, which in turn, will boost the demand for yacht shell doors over the forecast period. Also, Expansion of sales and distribution channels in developing countries intending to open doors for private companies is anticipated to create opportunities for the yacht shell door in coming years.
Increasing government and private spending on tourism and recreational activities will significantly increase the fleet size, thereby, augmenting the need for new units of yacht shell doors, especially in developed countries. Further, employment of stringent regulations, concerning passenger's safety, the adoption rate of yacht shell doors is expected to increase significantly during the forecast period. On the flip side, high cost of yacht shell doors, especially electrically driven yacht shell doors, and need of constant maintenance could restrict growth of the market to some extent.
Yacht Shell Doors: Regional Market Outlook: In recent past, Asia pacific excluding Japan has witnessed a significant growth in terms of tourism arrivals, particularly in Thailand, Australia, and Malaysia, thus it is stipulated that the region will hold a significant share of the global yacht shell door market over the forecast period. Additionally, the 'one belt, one road' ongoing project will revive the tourism industry in China, making it a hub of investment for tourism development and promotion. Western Europe is the hub of shipbuilding industry, thus, this extensive presence of manufacturers is expected to drive the demand for yacht shell doors in the region. Further, North America is anticipated to contribute undoubtedly in the global volume growth of the yacht shell doors market as a result of regions inclination toward recreational activities. Furthermore, the Middle East and Africa is expected to hold moderate share in the yacht shell doors market, due to limited presence of shipbuilding manufacturers and sea tourism. However, the rising trade and tourism activities in Gulf Countries is expected to propel the yacht shell doors market growth over the projected period. Rest of the regions, including Latin America and Japan, are expected witness moderate growth in the global yacht shell doors market during the forecasted time period.


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Permission to Feel: The Power of Emotional Intelligence to Achieve Well-Being and Success (Paperback)
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There was no immediate word on whether the White House will dump the nation's U.S. attorneys – including Manhattan's Mary Jo White and Brooklyn's Loretta Lynch – as new administrations often do.
Abortion-rights activists and other civil-liberties groups who opposed Ashcroft's nomination said they'll be watching his every move – as will conservatives who helped get him his new job.
"We will hold his feet to the fire. He promised to enforce the law, but a promise is very empty unless it is kept," said Planned Parenthood president Gloria Feldt.
Civil-rights activists also warned they'll do battle again if President Bush picks an extremist for the top Justice Department post of civil-rights chief.
Elliot Mincberg, a lawyer for People For The American Way (the group that led the fight against U.S. Supreme Court nominee Robert Bork) called on Bush to "avoid problems" by picking a "mainstream" civil-rights enforcer.


I have been playing around for some time, to make a whipped cream I found palatable, and that would be stable and tasty enough to pipe onto cakes, fill a sponge cake, or have a large dollop on a scone.
This is a Heavy Whipped Cream I came up with, and I think it does the trick!
It looks the part, has the slight yellowness, like Dairy cream does, and a good mouth texture.
It uses coconut cream as a base, but the coconut is an aftertaste, in my opinion, and not over riding.
Ordinary coconut cream whipped up, is very white, and not dense, so I think it is a definate improvement and more realistic, than just creamed coconut out of the can.
We have had it in a cream tea (recipe to be posted shortly) and it was PERFECT!!!.
I WAS JUMPING FOR JOY!
Yes, it DOES require a product you won't yet have in your pantry most likely, but it is inexpensive and you use only a tiny amount of it.
Another interesting factor, which I will demonstrate below, is how two different coconut creams reacted to having Margarine (vegan ofcourse) whipped into it.
However the Blue Dragon UHT coconut cream was perfect.
I have also replicated it using the type of coconut cream, where it separates into liquids and solids in the can and have added instructions in the recipe for weights of solids/liquids to use.
This is the coconut cream that went weird pictured below!
You can see the odd texture.
This is the texture of Blue Dragon Coconut cream for reference.
It doesn't tend to have liquid in the container nor be rock hard but is a thick paste.
Once you start to beat it however, it becomes Liquidy.
If you are using a can with solids and liquids, such as the one below, follow the instructions for how much solid vs liquid portion to use.
Blue Dragon coconut cream after beating : As you can see-still rather liquidy.
Before adding the Easy Whip, the mixture is still soft and sloppy.
After adding the Easy whip, you can see it now has the texture of whipped cream!
This is the cream straight after whipping.
Placed in a bowl and ready to be chilled, you can see it still has a slight gloss,but after being refrigerated overnight it becomes firmer and more matt, making it look more like Real Dairy cream.
This is the finished result after being chilled overnight.
I think the look and taste of it is most palatable, and is good enough to feel like a genuine cream.
Only those with the strongest aversion to coconut may disagree!
This is the same cream on day 2 after being made!
These are the products below that used to create the cream.
If possible, try to get the same ingredients to replicate the recipe.
I believe that the Easy Whip is probably a mix of 60/40 Hydroxypropylmethylcellulose and Xanthum gum, if you can't get it in your country or don't want to purchase the easy whip, and have access to those ingredients to play around, give it a go!
The taste and texture of the finished result therefore, will depend on what YOU have available in your area.
If you have a poor result with one coconut cream, please try a different brand.
If you want a sweetened whipped cream taste, then increase the sugar slightly and the vanilla slightly to taste.
The amounts in the actual recipe offset the savoury taste of the Margarine, without making the cream tasted like a sweetened whipped cream.
Give it a go, and see what you think!
I am definately looking forwards to baking a batch of scones to eat with it!
***I have added instructions below for using cans where there is a solid and a liquid content, rather than a nice smooth cream like the blue dragon.
These instructions are applicable to using the brand items I have listed above.
If using a different brand of coconut cream that contains definate solids/liquids, add the proportions listed of both solids and liquid, then whip the coconut cream up until soft BEFORE adding margarine.
As mentioned in the blurb above, One type of coconut cream I used produced an unsatisfactory result, so you will need to go on a brand by brand basis.
Whip the coconut cream until it is smooth.
Add 30 gms of Vitalite margarine.
Whip together until thoroughly combined and whipped.
-Measure out 1 GRAM of Easy Whip (approx 1/4 tsp)Add to bowl and whip in thoroughly.
I go by weight with this as slightly too much or too little will change the end result!
The easy whip will begin to absorb water and expand and stiffen the cream.
The process continues further after being chilled in the fridge.
Add 1 tsp of Icing sugar (confectioners sugar) and ½ tsp vanilla extract and continue to beat.
When thoroughly whipped, spoon into bowl and chill in refrigerator overnight.The cream loses its sheen and becomes more matt overnight.
On day 2, the cream is EVEN BETTER and has that lovely clotted cream look you see with the scones, so make it in advance if you want it like that.
It stays stable in the fridge or out on the bench top once set.
**** IF you get the curdling try warming it slightly and then re-whipping it to save it.
We have been playing around with different brands in the Plantified facebook group so we can work methods across the brands of coconut cream so everyone can try it.
These instructions are applicable to using the brand items I have listed above. If using a different brand of coconut cream that contains definate solids/liquids, add the proportions listed of both solids and liquid, then whip the coconut cream up until soft BEFORE adding margarine. As mentioned in the blurb above, One type of coconut cream I used produced an unsatisfactory result, so you will need to go on a brand by brand basis.
Empty entire contents of Coconut cream carton into a mixing bowl. (215 grams / approx 250ml) Whip the coconut cream until it is smooth.It will still be fairly runny at this point, if you have used Blue Dragon Coconut cream.
Add 30 gms of Vitalite margarine. Whip together until thoroughly combined and whipped. Again, it will still be fairly runny and won't form firm peaks until you have added the Easy Whip!
Measure out 1 GRAM of Easy Whip (approx 1/4 tsp). I go by weight with this as slight too much or too little will change the end result!
Add to bowl and whip in thoroughly. The easy will will begin to absorb water and expand and stiffen the cream. Keep whipping for a few minutes to allow it to work and swell. The process continues further after being chilled in the fridge.
Add 1 tsp (4.5 grams) of Icing sugar (confectioners sugar) and ½ tsp vanilla extract and continue to beat.
When thoroughly whipped, spoon into bowl and chill in refrigerator overnight. The cream loses its sheen and becomes more matt overnight as well as denser.
where do you buy easy whip?
I can't get Easy Whip, but I have methylcellulose! I've used it successfully in other recipes for stability so might try it here minus the xanthum gum (unless I can find some locally).
Please let us know how you go! Keep in mind there are at least 6 different types of Methycellulose, all having different properties. The one in EasyWhip is (E464) Hydroxypropylmethylcellulose. If that's the one you've got, try a 60/40 mix of that and Xanthan (they have a chemical interaction). If not, no harm trying and it may just work? I also have another whipped cream recipe coming out soon too, based on Soy milk, but I need to make it a few more times as its perfect sometimes and one or twice not worked at all, so need to test a bit more before i unleash it!
Hi Rinan Yes, you can make Macarons with Aquafaba, just as nice as the traditional Macarons!
Hello, thanks for this beautiful recipe! Do you suppose the recipe would work using only xanthan gum, or xanthan and any other stabilizers? I have some health concerns about the E464 and would love to find a way to avoid it.
Katrina, thank you for the quick reply! I'd be happy to test drive a new version of the recipe and let you know how it works.


Machinery + Equipment Rental | Southern Tool + Equipment Co.
* Additional Information: * Vaild ID. is require upon shell out. We do not accept any photo copy of ID.
Payment: Payments are due in advance. ½ day rental units must be returned within 4 hours of checkout time or rental is billed at the daily rate. Daily rental units must be returned within 24 hours of checkout time and the meter cannot exceed 8 hours or an overdue fee rates will be applied.
Overtime is 1/6 the daily rate.
One week= 7 days or 40 hours on the meter.
One month= 28 days or 160 hours on the meter.
Weekend rates are available at 1 ½ times the daily rate.
Customer is to return unit in cleaned condition or will be charged $150.00 / for clean up of machine, $90.00 clean up fee for attachments.
Insurance: Liability and physical loss or damage to the equipment is customer's responsibility. Public Liability is strictly customers responsibility All rentals are to be insured by customer.
Fuel: Customer is responsible for all fuel consumed.
Tire Wear: All excessive tire wear or tire damage will be charged to customer upon return.
Service: Customer is responsible for checking all fluids and grease daily and returning the equipment cleaned.
Points, Edges, Teeth: All equipment will be shipped with 50% minimum ground engaging tools. Units not returned with same will have additional charges due.
Repairs: Customer is responsible for any repairs resulting from lack of service, abuse or misuse. Abuse includes, but is not limited to, operating machine while low on ANY lubricant or coolant, oil pressure, excessive fuel pressure, or dirty filters. Customer is responsible for stopping operation anytime machine overheats, loses pressure or loses prime. Failure of any shutdown system does not alleviate customer's responsibility.
Freight: Customer has the option to pick up and return the equipment by his own facilities, by the common carrier, or Southern Tool + equipment ., if we are available. Freight will be charged from point of origin to job site with return to point of origin.
#Rates subject to change without notice.


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I like Microsoft's Windows 7 TV commercial where users flashback to an inspirational moment about improving Windows. It's cleverly done where the Windows-7-Was-My-Idea sequence depicts a younger, thinner person - whose teeth are whiter and eyes are brighter. My -- 25 plus years in software development, couch-potato, Monday-morning-marketing, 6 years of art school, thinking about it outside the 30 second TV script -- critique spun out of my noggin this way: the earth must have looped around the sun a couple times between the moment of divine inspiration and the feature's debut. One fellow looks like his moment of bliss was followed by 10 planetary orbits and maybe 10,000 glazed donuts. That's a lot of donuts. And 10 years is a long time to wait for a software feature. So the complete gulp of the ad went down like this: a light zesty initial splash, followed by a sour after taste.
I asked my teen age children, and a number of adults who are NOT in the software business what they thought of the ads and they all thought the ads were excellent. No one had any negative take on it. Everyone saw it as a actor-reenactment spoof that was clever and funny.
So I am wrong, the time between inspiration and delivery was not 5 or 10 years. No one gave any thought to how long it took Microsoft to delivery the software. No one thought it took a long time. Time did not even enter into the advertised mind-set of my sampled audience.
So this is a case of sitting too close to the fire and getting my software marketing antennae scorched.
Probably because DataWorks' strives be to highly agile and capable of accelerating in a high G turn (See John Boyd) I took the Microsoft ad too personal. At DataWorks we have one major release a year. There are usually 4 or so incremental minor releases that address software bugs, additional reports or small feature tweaks.
Back in December of 2008 I sent an email out to our end-users saying, "Hi, we are working on a new version, it's Christmas time, and in the retail spirit of the season, what do you want gift wrapped into our inventory control software?". We got a lot of great responses. We organized the list, sorted it twice, scored everything with a strategic index (how many other users want this too?), assigned developers with the tasks, and delivered the features in less than 12 months.
To speed up Purchase Order input, define a Default Ship To Address within an Employee Access Group. From the 2008 DataWorks Users Conference Group Session.
Change the name of the PO Input from "Multiple" to "Pick List". Also make it the first choice in the drop down choice since it is the most popular. From the 2008 DataWorks Users Conference Group Session.
Search for a SKU that has been counted in a physical inventory. From L. S. at Ripleys Entertainment.
Add a field to the Vendor definition and allow me to define a vendor's federal tax id number. Include the field in an Account Payable export. From L.K.A. at Beaumont Hospital.
A report to list inventory items that have margins outside the normal parameters I have set up by category. From J.M. at Grand Casino Hinckley.
For Products with many colors and sizes, add an option to the purchase order system to show only the SKUs that have been re-ordered. From J. McG. at Sea Island Company.
Please add a way that we can scan our product's barcodes with a portable data collector and import them directly into a purchase order. From T.K at Via Christi.
Create a consolidated Manufacturer by Product by SKU Inventory report that focuses on recent ordering and receiving performance. From J.W. at Jacksonville Zoo.
Best Worst Report with both Quantity Sold and Quantity On Hand Values, plus Percent of Totals. from S.W. at Ritz Carlton.
Comparative This Year to Date to Last Year to Date Sales report by Department. From L.S. at Ripleys Entertainment.
Create a forecast model that tracks and projects demand based on trailing 15-13 months (Q5) versus trailing 12-10 months (Q4) by Subclass. R.T. at Pebble Beach.
Redesign the Quick Physical system so that is actually quick! From the entire audience at the the 2008 DataWorks Users Conference.
Create a faster way to input and cancel ticket batches. From T.Van A. at LaPlaya Beach & Golf Resort.
Thanks for all of the ideas. These are just a few of the ideas the DataWorks community submitted and turned up in the release. If you see your suggestion above and would like your name published - just let us know and we will give you proper credit. You can read about all the enhancements by clicking here: Version 6's Feature List. Additionally you can watch this recorded preview of the software.
If you have an idea for our next version, please feel free to add a comment here. Keep the ideas coming and we will keep the code rolling. Together we design a better inventory back office system.


text:
Alamo Tile Co., Inc.
Stone Beauty
For any developer of a large commercial property in Texas it would be hard to forget the Alamo – Alamo Tile & Stone, that is, which has been responsible for helping to realize some of the most remarkable sites in the region, as Lorie Greenspan discovers.
Volume 13 | Issue 1 | Year 2010
Remember the Alamo is one of those phrases of American history that continues to thrive as a cheer of sorts, a rallying cry to always push ahead. Alamo Tile & Stone takes this cry seriously, one tile at a time as it slowly conquers its competition by adding value, expertise and veritable beauty to each project it undertakes.
Alamo provides Texas with full-service tile, marble, natural stone and brick paver subcontracting services, striving to implement a work environment that encourages innovation and aggressive performance to deliver outstanding products on time and on budget. The company furnishes, fabricates and installs granite, natural stone, ceramic, and porcelain tile, all imported directly to its San Antonio facility from Italy, China, and Brazil. Additional services include drafting, engineering, and stone testing, as well as project management.
FROM FIREFIGHTING TO TILE SETTING
Alamo was founded in 1981 by Roland Martinez, a firefighter in San Antonio. "I learned the tile business as a 15-year-old kid when an old union tile setter came to redo our bathroom," Martinez recalls. "I helped him all week and when he finished the work he handed me a check for $75, which I refused to take but he insisted that I take it and that I continue to help him on his jobs. I worked with him part time through high school and college until I got in the fire department."
Once in the department, he recalls, word got around that he knew how to install tile so by word of mouth Roland's business got off the ground, eventually becoming widespread enough for him to leave firefighting and pursue tile-laying full time, which occurred in 1994.
"I have always been a very detailed person and our field side has always been a leader in the industry from bidding to technical aspects of installations," Martinez stresses. Alamo Tile & Stone took off in 1994, growing to its current size five years ago. "We have felt that staying in the $12-$15 million yearly revenue range has been the most profitable and productive for us," He adds. "Because of our name and history we are asked to bid on all major projects in Texas but we try to select the best ones for our expertise."
Since becoming a premier provider of tile installation services Alamo has been involved in an array of prestigious projects, including the San Antonio Convention Center, Weston Hotel River Walk, Hyatt Hill Country, and other landmarks.
A WIDE ARRAY OF CHALLENGES
Fiesta Texas in San Antonio was the company's first large commercial project. "The challenge with this project was that we needed to secure a payment and performance bond and we had never done this before," Martinez remembers. "The project was roughly $250,000 starting out and I was introduced to a bonding agent who was young and aggressive and he came up with an idea to divide up the contracts into a small part and a larger part. This way we were able to secure a bond for the first small part and then add on the rest via change order. At that time once a bond was secured, change orders were automatically added on with no review." The project, he explains, consisted of more than 25,000 square feet of tile in restrooms and buildings and over 50,000 square feet of brick paver at the entrance. "The project ended up being over $750,000 for us and propelled us into large commercial projects."
Brooke Army Medical Center in 1991 was the company's first large government project. Here, the challenge involved the detail of specifications laid out by the government, including measuring sand and cement to exact proportions, using slow speed drills for mixing mortars, and checking mortar slake time. The project consisted of more than 600 patient toilet rooms, staff locker rooms, cafeteria, kitchen, and lobby flooring. "It was at that time – and still is – the number one government trauma hospital in the U.S.," Martinez says. The project started around $650,000 and finished at over $1 million.
In 1994 Alamo took on its first resort, the Hyatt Hill Country, a 500-room hotel and spa facility, in which the company installed more than 25,000 square feet of lobby and pool flagstone flooring while maintaining a 3/8-inch uniformed grout joint. Also, it was the first large project in which the company also provided and installed all of the stone tops in the guestrooms and throughout the hotel public space. "At the time the project was our largest contract ever at $1.7 million," Martinez says.
Texas Ranger Baseball Stadium in 1993 was Alamo's first large project outside of San Antonio and subsequently led to the opening of its Dallas Office. The project started at just under $1 million and ended up at $1.3 million. "The challenge here was that we were given a change order to install 25,000 square feet of one-inch by one-inch floor tile at the concourse at the club level with less than 23 days to the opening game. "The project consisted of 50,000 square feet of tile at all stadium restrooms, club boxes, and concession areas," Martinez recalls. "We successfully completed the installation and we all attended opening night at the stadium. To this day all names of all workers are on a plaque at the Centerfield Concourse Wall."
Finally, Alamo's work on the JW Marriott-San Antonio in 2009 has been its largest revenue project to date. The contract was over $6 million for the 1,000-room resort hotel, consisting of five restaurants and bars. Alamo had more than 100 men on the job working seven days a week for six months to make the targeted November opening. The project, Martinez relates, included porcelain tile guest bathrooms, quarry tile back bars, lobby stone flooring and base, grand stair slab treads and risers, Waterjet cut stone, mosaic spurs and stone counter tops including back-lit Onyx at the reception desks. "We were involved with this project from the design concept through to completion, including budgeting and sourcing of more than 40 types of stone, and detailed scheduling of production with the general contractor," said Vice President and JW Project Manager Kyle Mitchell.
CAPABLE AND PROUD
Needless to say, Alamo is one of the largest tile and stone companies in Texas, recently nominated for Specialty Contractor of the Year by its peers in the industry, and run by key people that, in addition to Martinez and Mitchell, include Robert Lee Copeland, Vice President of the Dallas Office, and Office Manager and Treasurer Melissa Szesnat. Alamo also employs a person in China to procure tile and stone. "People here are at the highest skill level," notes Business Development Representative Jason Mahurin. "We've all been in the industry a long time. I would say what sets us apart from our competitors is how well each person works together as a team throughout our company. It is an honor to work for Alamo Tile & Stone and no one takes it for granted."
A big portion of Alamo's success is due to the company's investment in capabilities, Roland stresses. "Our machinery is the latest technology; we have a large flat wet saw, a Comandulli edge profile machine that will detail up to five different edge profiles, and we also have a CNC machine that allows us to cut whatever shape or form we need through computer software. We are top of the line and it shows in our everyday process. We also have experienced artists so we can draw our own shop drawings in CAD and produce perfection every time."
When it's not adding its aesthetic touches to buildings, Alamo reaches out to its communities, participating in fundraisers and service events. Its latest was in conjunction with Joeris General Contractors and involved the renovation and remodel of the Lila Cockrell Parks and Recreation Center. For this project, Alamo donated the tile and labor as well as the fabricated granite.
"We have an unwillingness to fail," Martinez notes. "We feel that when we sign onto a job it's ours until we finish. We know that we are in a finish type of business and every single piece of our product is seen by the public. I truly believe that we have an unbelievable portfolio of projects to be proud of."
www.alamotileandstone.com
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