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Charles Harper

@chaharper.bsky.social

Scotsman, European, Humanist, synaesthete. Retired from Education. Walker and culture lover. Co-own and help run a guesthouse on the Isle of Skye, Scotland. Many enthusiasms cluding the fox-red Labrador called Brodie. I post my own photographs.

40 Followers  |  99 Following  |  8 Posts  |  Joined: 09.11.2024  |  1.4596

Latest posts by chaharper.bsky.social on Bluesky

Preview
Petition: Cancel Trump’s state visit Stop Trump Coalition

stoptrump.org.uk/petition-can...

28.02.2025 22:08 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
Every NHS patient needs to see this. #nhs #politics #viral #data #news #nhsprivatisation #trump #uk
YouTube video by Just Treatment Every NHS patient needs to see this. #nhs #politics #viral #data #news #nhsprivatisation #trump #uk

🚨 EXPOSED: Every #NHS patient needs to watch this...⬇️

Palantir CEO Alex Karp bragged about scaring enemies & neutralising them - whilst his spy tech company has a £330m contract to handle our NHS patient records.

Get Palantir & its CEO away from our NHS!

youtube.com/shorts/tXdCA...

18.02.2025 16:14 — 👍 110    🔁 139    💬 6    📌 11
Preview
Stop the Government from spying on all of our bank accounts Sir Keir Starmer is pushing plans we defeated under the Conservative Government - to spy on all of our bank accounts on the premise of dealing with welfare fraud and error. It will force banks to fla...

This cause is close to my heart - please sign: you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/st...

04.02.2025 22:50 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
Preview
Revealed: bias found in AI system used to detect UK benefits fraud Exclusive: Age, disability, marital status and nationality influence decisions to investigate claims, prompting fears of ‘hurt first, fix later’ approach

An artificial intelligence system used by the UK government to detect welfare fraud is showing bias according to people’s age, disability, marital status and nationality prompting fears of ‘hurt first, fix later’ approach
www.theguardian.com/society/2024...

06.12.2024 08:27 — 👍 717    🔁 308    💬 64    📌 51
The photograph is a shot looking across the caldera of an extinct volcano to the hills in the distance. On the slopes and inside the rim grapes are being cultivated in circular pits with semicircular low walls to stop the wind and allow water to collect overnight. There is a flourishing wine industry using these labour intensive methods. I made a few adjustments to the depth of colour and the contrast. The colours were all there, I simply turned them up a few notches..

The photograph is a shot looking across the caldera of an extinct volcano to the hills in the distance. On the slopes and inside the rim grapes are being cultivated in circular pits with semicircular low walls to stop the wind and allow water to collect overnight. There is a flourishing wine industry using these labour intensive methods. I made a few adjustments to the depth of colour and the contrast. The colours were all there, I simply turned them up a few notches..

“Wilhelmina Barns-Graham was one of Britain’s best 20th century artists. Scottish born, she was a sublime painter, draughtswoman, printmaker and a brilliant colourist.”

I was on Lanzarote last week. ‘Willy’ came here 5 times. Her work inspired me to make photographs of the landscape. This is one:

03.12.2024 05:59 — 👍 2    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
Located in the centre of the island of Lanzarote, the Caldera Blanca route crosses an area of ​​volcanic badlands rich in lava forms that are the product of eruptions that occurred between 1730 and 1736. Its two central elements, Caldereta and Caldera Blanca, come from two ancient cones generated by previous eruptions. Caldera Blanca is one of the main peaks of the volcanic chains in the centre of the island. The caldera is 1.2 km across.

Located in the centre of the island of Lanzarote, the Caldera Blanca route crosses an area of ​​volcanic badlands rich in lava forms that are the product of eruptions that occurred between 1730 and 1736. Its two central elements, Caldereta and Caldera Blanca, come from two ancient cones generated by previous eruptions. Caldera Blanca is one of the main peaks of the volcanic chains in the centre of the island. The caldera is 1.2 km across.

I’m on a walking holiday in the Canary Isles:

“Las Montañas del Fuego are the unusual result of the eruptions in the south of  Lanzarote in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. 
It is part of the Timanfaya National Park.”

#lanzarote

28.11.2024 07:23 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0

Kemi Badenoch promising to cut immigration if you vote Tory again, immediately after the Tories allowed record levels of immigration during 14 years in power.

She thinks you hate foreigners so much you developed amnesia.

27.11.2024 16:17 — 👍 729    🔁 153    💬 23    📌 4

Now THIS is a very thorough starter pack.

Highly recommend that you hit “follow all” on this lot. 👍

go.bsky.app/FpbsVro

20.11.2024 21:15 — 👍 855    🔁 246    💬 60    📌 16
“The snow had begun in the gloaming, And busily all the night Had been heaping field and highway With a silence deep and white. Every pine and fir and hemlock Wore ermine too dear for an earl, And the poorest twig on the elm-tree Was ridged inch deep with pearl.” From ‘First Snow’ by Mary Oliver. Not quite so deeply heaped here but still and soft and lovely.

“The snow had begun in the gloaming, And busily all the night Had been heaping field and highway With a silence deep and white. Every pine and fir and hemlock Wore ermine too dear for an earl, And the poorest twig on the elm-tree Was ridged inch deep with pearl.” From ‘First Snow’ by Mary Oliver. Not quite so deeply heaped here but still and soft and lovely.

First snow of the winter. Always a thrill, even more so when the sun shines from a blue sky.

#November #firstsnow #LochBracadale #IsleofSkye #Scotland

19.11.2024 21:34 — 👍 2    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
What it is to be on an elevated position overlooking your home village….The weather up there is always different and very often our ascent is met by high, bracing winds just as we reach the top. The wider view can stretch as far the Small Isles of Rum and Canna and from a few steps away the hills of the Outer Hebrides. There are misty distances despite the bight sunshine and the sparkling waters of Loch Dunvegan.

What it is to be on an elevated position overlooking your home village….The weather up there is always different and very often our ascent is met by high, bracing winds just as we reach the top. The wider view can stretch as far the Small Isles of Rum and Canna and from a few steps away the hills of the Outer Hebrides. There are misty distances despite the bight sunshine and the sparkling waters of Loch Dunvegan.

Brodie the red fox Labrador Retriever is a bringer of much joy. He needs a daily walk and one of our favourites is to climb this hill overlooking Dunvegan and the Loch. We go up there in all weathers.

#IsleofSkye #Scotland #LabradorRetriever #dailywalk #uplifting #joy

17.11.2024 20:28 — 👍 3    🔁 0    💬 1    📌 0
One of the most widespread themes for European Lantern Parades was the celebration of Saint Martin, who was buried on November 11, in 397.
To this day, many towns celebrate his life on the 11th day of the 11th month of the year. Some start their celebrations at exactly 11 minutes past 11 in the morning. Originating in France, the custom spread to Germany, Scandinavia and Eastern Europe. Today, St. Martin’s Day is celebrated in countries around the world.
In the most popular St. Martin legend, he cut his cloak in half to share with a freezing beggar at Amiens. This is a picture of a calm sundown on the 11th of November. It was just about 16:15.hrs.

One of the most widespread themes for European Lantern Parades was the celebration of Saint Martin, who was buried on November 11, in 397. To this day, many towns celebrate his life on the 11th day of the 11th month of the year. Some start their celebrations at exactly 11 minutes past 11 in the morning. Originating in France, the custom spread to Germany, Scandinavia and Eastern Europe. Today, St. Martin’s Day is celebrated in countries around the world. In the most popular St. Martin legend, he cut his cloak in half to share with a freezing beggar at Amiens. This is a picture of a calm sundown on the 11th of November. It was just about 16:15.hrs.

Saint Martin's Day or Martinmas is the feast day of Saint Martin of Tours on the 11th November.
Martinmas In Scotland was one of the half yearly quarter days when landlords’ rents were paid, and new hands were hired.
#sunset #scotland #isleofskye

13.11.2024 00:52 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
The vibrant hues of a sunset can be incredibly calming. They act as a visual cue to slow down and unwind, lowering your heart rate and easing muscle tension.
The warm colours associated with sunsets have been linked to feelings of happiness and optimism. Think yellows, oranges, pinks, and purples – these evoke joy and a sense of peace. Sunsets and sunrises also trigger the release of dopamine, a feel-good chemical in the brain.  
This view from my neighbour’s garden was short lived but potent.

The vibrant hues of a sunset can be incredibly calming. They act as a visual cue to slow down and unwind, lowering your heart rate and easing muscle tension. The warm colours associated with sunsets have been linked to feelings of happiness and optimism. Think yellows, oranges, pinks, and purples – these evoke joy and a sense of peace. Sunsets and sunrises also trigger the release of dopamine, a feel-good chemical in the brain. This view from my neighbour’s garden was short lived but potent.

The soothing colours at sunset bring out feelings if peace…
Another day, another sunset…the world turns and day turns to night, night turns to day. Then there’s the cycle of the year. The seasons are marked with celebrations and light is very often featured. We are well into that season now…

09.11.2024 04:18 — 👍 5    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0

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