黃蝶採蜜記

今早熱浪逼人，吃過早餐，去過超級市場，歸家巳是九時左右。路過彎曲的花槽，忽見一隻色彩不甚繽紛的淺黃色蝴蝶在花叢間飛舞。我以最快的速度掏出隨身相機，像影迷追「星」的姿態去追著這隻小小蝴蝶。它忽左忽右飄渺的飛行路線，弄我至汗流浹背。可幸它每每用上幾秒鐘停留在鮮紅的龍船花上，慢條斯理去採花蜜─那麼樣，我才有足夠時間去捕捉這隻忙碌而不怕人的蝴蝶採蜜這組鏡頭呢。

A Bed of beautiful flowers at Hong Kong Park

For a few minutes near the entrance of Hong Kong Park last Saturday, I gazed at these beautiful flowers in a flower bed. The flowers were mixed so well that they were worth looking at for a whole afternoon.

How can different flowering plants be “blended” in such a good combination? The gardener must have spent a lot of time in designing in his/her head how to imbed the flowering plants into the soil so that they can grow harmoniously together.

The Statue of Liberty at Mid-levels

Last Saturday, July 14, Elly was given a red flower with a green stalk twisted from narrow balloons at her cousin’s birthday party in a restaurant at Mid-levels, Central. An idea blinked at my head. I made a gesture to her to raise her flower as she was kneeling on a chair close to me.

She followed my instruction and raised her flower high for a photo taken. At that moment, I imagine her to be the "Statue of Liberty" at New York. Her smile, full of sunlight, was completely different from the stern look of the cold Statue in the United States. Elly was holding her “torch of fire” by her left hand, instead of the right hand by the Statue. Another obvious difference is that Elly did not hold a book in her other hand.

At that moment, Elly suddenly reflected the image of the famous Statue in New York to me, which was indeed a very interesting flash across my mind.

Parrot Flowers

It is rare to see this kind of flowers that grows in Thailand. The flowers look like parrots and they belong to a protected species. Is there any relationship between the flowers with real parrots? I don’t know.

Euro2012歐洲國家盃決賽

Euro2012歐洲國家盃決賽終於在昨晚(七月一日)來臨。西班牙國家足球隊擁著2008年歐洲國家盃冠軍及2010年世界盃冠軍榮譽而來跟意大利隊硬拼。

開賽初期雙方互有攻勢，西班牙眾球員的精準短傳真了不起，進攻時有很大作用。西班牙的守門員卡斯拿斯亦很出色，為己方救出兩三個險球。

在14分鐘，21號球員大衛施華走位迅速刁鑽，在中路得到10號球員法比加斯在底線回傳，一腳把足球踢進龍門裏面成一比零。

在41分鐘，18希號球員艾巴接應從後傳球單刀直入把球送入網內。賽果變成二比零。


下半場，意大利3號球員基亞連尼扭傷了腿而退出陣線，意大利隊要十人應戰(因為球員已換盡)，全隊即時雪上加霜。

被換入的9號費蘭度托利斯在84分鐘為西班牙射入第三球。這時意大利隊大勢已去，冠軍希望幻滅了。

西班牙的13號球員馬達得很到費蘭度托利斯傳中擊球入網。賽果頓成四比零。

最後西班牙國家隊以無敵姿態取勝及蟬聯歐洲國家盃冠軍！

Euro2012歐洲國家盃決賽前之列隊儀式

Euro2012歐洲國家盃決賽前，千人操之後， 西班牙和意大利球員牽著一班小朋友的手魚貫進場. 兩隊在國旗旁邊列隊，意大利的國歌隨即奏出。

鏡頭開始捕捉每一位意大利球員唱國歌的表情。這裡唱得最投入的是隊長(即守門員)保方。鏡頭一轉，忽見球隊後方近中場位置有一班歌手正在伴唱意大利國歌，當然他們唱起歌來比球員們的更悅耳更動聽啦。

隨後奏出的是西班牙的國歌。令我覺得奇怪的是所有球員都合攏了嘴巴，好像人人不識唱自己國歌一樣。原來從電視台評述員口中得悉西班牙國歌是沒有歌詞的！

兩隊的守門員保方及卡斯尼拿斯(同是隊長)互相交換錦旗，又和球証一一握手。主球証以擲毫方式由勝方決定選場。

Euro2012歐洲國家盃決賽前奏

Euro2012歐洲國家盃(即歐洲足球錦標賽)決賽於七月一日在基輔可容納60000人的奧林匹克球場舉行。

球賽前奏是千人操。分別穿上奪目的橙和綠色彩衣的表演者砌出穿著足球鞋的「大腳」不斷踢球，也見「人頭」在頂頭鎚。從一鏡頭，我捕捉到巨球入了直正龍門裏面。其間有一位美女歌手在巨型銀色國家盃前面跳舞唱歌。最後表演人員砌出一個人人皆有的一個美麗的心來結束表演。

一個黑暗的日子

二零一二年六月二十八日是德國國家足球隊一個黑暗的日子。這隊雄心勃勃的球隊在上半場開賽20分鐘被意大利9號球員巴洛迪利接應隊友轉中的球在近龍門用頭鎚頂入第一球。

在36分鐘，巴洛迪利又接到隊友一個長傳足球單刀直入，在禁區頂附近勁射足球入網，賽果成二比零。令我最感動的一刻是其中一位女觀眾流下眼淚來。這可見她內心悲痛不已，我當時的心情也很沉重。

可惜的是德國隊在下半場像洩了氣的氣球，始終把握不到機會反平 。雖然在臨完場前獲得一球12碼，但一切都太遲了。完場笛聲一響之下，球隊原本想進入決賽的希望立即幻滅了!

A harvest of plums

These plums are most inviting to look and taste. They grow in the backyard of my dear colleague, Felix.

Felix told me this: “We had planted this tree (the one with white flowers bears fruits) for 2 or 3 years. In the previous year we did have just a few fruits, so strictly speaking this is the first year we have this "harvest". That's why we feel it exciting about this "first time".

The taste is good. The flesh is sweet and soft and very juicy -- it is the kind that once you don't have to bite through the hard flesh (maybe we pick them when they are fully ripened), and instead you can break up the flesh even with your tongue and enjoy the sweet juice in it. The skin is just a little sour and blends well with the sweet flesh inside. We like them very much.

The plum tree flowers somewhere in Feb/March, and it takes 2-3 months for the fruits (at first green and small) to mature to this size.  We picked the fruits on 2012/6/28.”

Which soccer team will win in Euro 2012?

Maybe the clues come from this advertisement which appears occasionally throughout this month in TV. By looking at the make-ups of national flags on the faces of the two gentlemen, either Germany or Spain will become the champion. Do you believe this?

In my opinion, the German team will win in the Final match this time because it is strong, all-round and swift in its attacks. Germany’s opponent, Spain is still strong this year because it is full of football “stars”. The Final on Sunday, June 30th, must be a tough match!

Germany vs Greece Euro 2012

It was a quarter-final match between Germany and Greece on Friday, June 22, 2012.

At 39 minutes, Philipp LAHN (16) of Germany team struck a long distance ball at the goal of Greece. The ball went straight into the net. This brought the first goal to Germany (1:0).

Not long, at 55 minutes, a swift attack by two fast-running Greek footballers had brought back hope to the Greece’s side. Long-haired number 7, Giorgos SAMARAS dashed forward and stretched his legs to hit the ball into the net. It was the work of his team-mate by a short, but effective pass. That goal had raised the atmosphere of the stadium to a climax. Nobody knew what would happen next. The score was an equalizer 1:1.

At 61 minutes, the midfield footballer, Sami KHEDIRA, near the penalty-goal mark struck his ball into the net. Germany regained their confidence and the team was once more on the upper-hand (2:1).

Seven minutes later, at 68 minutes, striker Miroslav KLOSE hit the ball which flew in from the right corner into the net with his forehead. He kissed his right fist to celebrate for his effort. The score became 3:1.

A fourth goal was scored by forward 21 Marco REUS, at 71 minutes. It seemed that Germany had overwhelmed Greece with 4:1.

Miraculously, Greece got a penalty goal at 89 minutes. It was because Greece 15 accidentally struck the ball at Germany 20’s right hand. Greece 14, Dimitris SALPINGIDIS, scored the goal easily since the Germany goalkeeper hopped in the opposite direction. It was just a consolation score because it was too late for Greece’s rebound for a victory over Germany. It was 4:2.

Greece finally lost the game when the whistle was blown by the chief referee. Germany could go into the semi-final. It is going to play the match against Portugal in a semi-final.

The Deck of cards

A Deck of cards can be cartoonized like the one in the photo above, but it could be meaningful to a soldier who had a very different point of view on cards.

Tex Ritter made the story of "The Deck Of Cards" popular in the 1940's.This may be a newer video added to version, but still worthy of viewing (Click the words in blue).

捱眼瞓的日子

這兩星期都過著捱眼瞓的日子，原因歐洲國家盃足球賽(波蘭及烏克蘭合辦)正一浪接一浪的在香港深夜時分舉行，可是免費台總共只播放四場比賽，如果又想免費看其餘的實事，就要自己想辦法了。

   
這裡介紹的是烏克蘭當地六月十五日(星期五) 晚上九時正英格蘭對瑞典的比賽.

英格蘭國家隊由謝拉特(Stephen Gerrard)率領，對方瑞典隊由伊巴謙摩域(Zlatan Ibrahimovic)帶軍。開賽前，場中央有大約一百人砌出麥穗和維京人在航行中船隻上的圖案 。眾球員列隊牽著可愛的小童入場，站在國旗旁邊。兩國的國歌隨即奏起，然後球員互相握手。雙方隊長互換錦旗和握手，面上都是木無表情，神色俱見凝重，繼而與執法的五位球証一一握手；循例由兩隊長抽籤，主球証以擲毫方式決定,而勝方可選擇場地。

最初兩隊成拉鋸戰。在上半場二十三分鐘，英格蘭9號球員卡路爾(Carroll)得到隊長長傳足球,第一時間跳高用頭鎚將足球頂入對方龍門成一比零.

下半場開賽四分鐘瑞典隊3號美爾保(Mellberg)得到隊友在禁區外傳球輕易送球入網，賽果成一比一。

十分鐘後(即第五十九鐘), 瑞典3號美爾保又接到長傳足球,今次他用頭鎚攻入今仗個人第二球。當時全球英格蘭球迷好像跌入了深淵一樣。

到六十四分鐘時，幸福之神再次降臨在英格蘭球隊身上。入替的7號球員禾確特(阿仙奴的Walcott)短時間內在禁區外不遠的正中位置大力勁射足球入網。對方的球員眼白白的目送足球入自己的龍門，入球紀錄被改寫成二比二。

七十八分鐘，效力曼聯的英格蘭22號球員韋碧克(Welbeck)在瑞典龍門面前背向用後腳巧妙地鈎入致勝的一球.

這場三比二的球賽高潮迭起， 讓球迷看得如癡如醉，大家心情像坐過山車一樣，又起又跌，結果是英格蘭球隊大有機會入準決賽。 看這場免費球賽真是賞心樂事，大清早才上牀是值得的。

Photos of recent Solar Eclipse by specialists

In this particular year 2012, many people are deeply interested in viewing the eclipses of the sun whether it is annular or partial or not. Here are some photos taken by specialists in photography or astronomy on May 20. I just marvel at these photos, but not knowing how they can be taken by cameras of the specialists.

The top left photo shows the Eclipse over the Golden Gate Bridge:

Although San Francisco was just below the path of the eclipse to see a proper ring of fire, it has been quite amazing to see the tiny crescent of the sun right above the South tower of the GGB. Great day over the Bay!

This photo was taken in Marina District, San Francisco, CA, US, using a Canon EOS 5D.
Image Credit : Marco Pelo

Both the top-right and bottom-right photos are montages.

The bottom left photo shows The Lord Of The Ring (Annular Solar Eclipse) on.May 20, 2012
Sundown, TX.by Chris Lynch.using a Nikon D7000.

The bottom centre photo was photographed by Randall Benton, Sacramento Bee/AP. 

蝴蝶蘭與日本葵共舞

最近我發現屋苑的園藝師巧妙地把泥土像牛油塗上麵包似的填在這棵日本葵嶙峋的樹幹上，再植上黃色小花的蝴蝶蘭。在微風下，小花像蝴蝶們在日本葵樹下徘徊飛舞，猶有動人及有趣的詩意！

Very Interesting Photos

 
 
Usually we freeze movements of moving objects in a photo, but a lady photographer in New York City. Jamie Beck, on the other hand, makes something move inside her photos. I like these photos.

The 2012 transit of Venus

The 2012 transit of Venus (金星凌日) occurred on 5 June when the planet Venus appeared as a small, dark disk moving across the face of the Sun. It began at 22:09 UTC, and finished at 04:49 UTC on 6 June. Depending on the position of the observer, the exact times varied by up to ±7 minutes. Here it is a photo Peter Ng gave me yesterday. To me, Venus in the photo looks like a dirty particle on the lens of a telescopic camera.

Transits of Venus are among the rarest of predictable celestial phenomena and occur in pairs eight years apart which are themselves separated by more than a century: the previous transit was in June 2004, and the next pair of transits will occur in December, 2117 and December, 2125 which means they are none of our business.

The entire transit was visible from the western Pacific Ocean, north-westernmost North America (Peter Ng and Felix Ching can see it), northeastern Asia, Japan, the Philippines, eastern Australia (Ho Keung’s family can observe it), New Zealand, and high Arctic locations including northernmost Scandinavia, and Greenland. In North America, the Caribbean, and northwestern South America, the beginning of the transit was visible on 5 June until sunset. From sunrise on 6 June, the end of the transit was visible from South Asia (people of Hong Kong can see it), the Middle East, east Africa, and most of Europe. The phenomenon was not visible from most of South America nor from western Africa.

Three wheels vs Four wheels

It was a happy day yesterday to both of my grand-daughters because Philip and Connie bought Abby a bicycle with two auxiliary wheels at the rear and Elly a small tricycle.

I heard that they rode from the toy-shop at New Town Plaza to Shatin MTR (Railway) Station. Most probably they used lifts instead of escalators. How interesting it was to see two little girls riding a long way through the thick crowds of people at the Plaza!

Abby’s bicycle is dearer than her little sister’s tricycle. It has a bell and a braking system which seems quite high-graded. Elly has a doll of “Doraemon” at the control handle and a small rack at the rear wheels for carrying her private luggage.

The colours of the toy bicycle and tricycle surprise my wife and me at the first sight. The reason is : Abby loves blue colour, but she preferred this pink bicycle. On the other hand, Elly loves pink, but she leans on to this blue tricycle. Maybe there was no choice of colours of toys that favoured the two children.

The grand-children had a cycling practice today at the public park below. There was no problem for Abby because she is already six and can master the skills easily. She rode swiftly and much much faster than Elly. Deep in my heart, I hope that Abby can strengthen her thin legs through cycling. To my surprise, Elly was able to steer her tricycle well and alone at the circular track of the park although she needed more strength at each start of drive. For some time, she kept calling us when we were out of her sight.

Dubrovnik

Dubrovnik (杜布羅夫尼克) is an old city on the Adriatic Sea coast in the extreme south of Croatia(克羅地亞). It is one of the most outstanding tourist resorts of the Mediterranean, a seaport and the centre of the Dubrovnik-Neretva County. Its population is about 43,000 in 2011. Dubrovnik is nicknamed "Pearl of the Adriatic" and is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1979.

The city of Dubrovnik was built on maritime trade. In the Middle Ages it became the only city-state in the Adriatic to rival Venice. The city achieved a remarkable level of development during the 15th and 16th centuries. Furthermore, Dubrovnik was one of the centres of the development of the Croatian language and literature, home to many notable poets, playwrights, painters, mathematicians, physicists and other scholars.

Today Dubrovnik is an elite destination and one of the most beautiful towns in the Mediterranean. Dubrovnik used to be an independent republic, surviving mostly on trade. It managed to survive many centuries, with constant threats to its territory, particularly from the mighty Ottoman Empire and Venice.

Dubrovnik is attractive in stunning architecture and sculptural details, and boasts of its spectacular churches, monasteries, museums, and fountains (Onofrio is an example). Note that Rector’s Palace is an important museum to study the development of the city.

Some sleeping poses of cats

Cats like sleeping. Here you can see some of them sleep comfortably in different poses – some hanging, curling or straightening-out like human, piling up and drooping because of tiredness. They all sleep well and enjoy every moment of their relaxation. Of course some possess skills of their own.