Everyday People—We are all alike. We are all unique.

Two Ladies–Photograph of the Year

Today’s Lifespan is significantly longer than that of the 17th century: 35 years of age.
In 2014, a one million dollar prize was offered to scientists who “hack the code of life” and push the apparent maximum human lifespan past 120 years.

The longest known and confirmed lifespan is 122 years. Jeanne Louise Calment met Vincent Van Gogh when she was thirteen. Born February 21, 1875 in Arles, France and died August 4, 1997, she lived her entire life in Arles. On April 8, 1898, Jeanne married her second cousin Fernand Nicolas Calment and moved into the apartment above his shop where she lived until she was 110 years old.

In 1965 at age 90, having outlived husband, daughter and grandson, Jeanne entered into a reverse mortgage contract to sell the apartment to lawyer André-François Raffray. He agreed to pay her 2,500 francs (€381.12) monthly until she died. Raffray ended up paying Jeanne more than €140,000, which was more than double the apartment’s value. Raffray died before she did prompting Jeanne Calment to comment, “In life, one sometimes makes bad deals”.

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Astral Weeks—Best in Show Photography Center of Cape Cod 2019

Ballet first appeared in the Italian Renaissance courts during the 13th century as entertainment for nobles. Ballet began without tutus or pointe shoes. The dancers wore the fashionable clothing of the time and even encouraged audience members to join in toward the end.

When Catherine de Medici married King Henry II of France, she arranged for ballet to be performed at the French court. She held festivals, ballet de cour, which became popular. The French influence continued with King Louis XIV, who having grown up seeing ballet, popularized and standardized ballet. A technique and syllabus was created and ballet became an art form requiring disciplined training by professionals.

It wasn’t until the 19th century that the tutu and pointe shoes were introduced to ballet. In 1832, the ballet “La Sylphide” was created to showcase Marie Taglioni’s en pointe dancing. Until then, pointe shoes were considered an ungraceful stunt. The tutu premiered in Paris, France in 1842 to highlight and bring greater appreciation to a ballerina’s difficult leg and foot work.

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Eye To Eye—First Place 2017

Softball is played with a larger ball than baseball and on a smaller field. Softball was invented as an indoor game in 1887, Chicago, Illinois. Because originally the larger ball used in the game was soft, the name softball was officially attached to game in 1926.

The first official women’s softball team was formed in 1895 at Chicago’s West Division High School. However, the team played without a coach until 1899, and there was still little spectator interest in the women’s game of softball. The attitude quickly changed in 1904 when Spalding’s Indoor Baseball Guide had an entire magazine section featuring women’s softball.

In the early days of women’s softball, a slow looping pitch was used because the general attitude about a woman’s fragility caused many to believe a fast pitch could break a woman’s bones. Of course, society’s attitude matured and now women softball pitchers throw a fast pitch underhanded with amazing speed and accuracy.

The first world championship of woman’s softball was held in 1965 with five competing teams in Australia. In 1996, woman’s fast-pitch softball became a medal sport at the Olympic Summer Games in Atlanta, Georgia.

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Double Jointed?

In 1980, Minnesota brothers Scott and Brennan Olsen found a pair of old in-line skates at a sporting goods store and thought they would be perfect for off-season hockey training. The brothers set to work on improving the design and soon manufactured the first Rollerblade in-line skates in their parents’ basement.

In 1983 when Scott Olson founded Rollerblade, Inc., the company expanded its target demographic to include women and children and suddenly “Rollerblading” was everywhere. As many as 4,000 Rollerbladers showed up on weekends to skate around Central Park while many others gathered at the Central Park mall to show off in-line skating skills. Rollerblading became so popular, the company stopped taking orders in the early 1990s because demand exceeded production capabilities.

However, the popularity of in-line skating faded as the new millennium approached. The final blow came in 2005 when the X Games removed in-line skating from its roster of events. For many people in-line skating is as outdated as beepers and fax machines.

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Waiting—Second Place 2015

In 1853, Charles Frederick Worth asked his wife, Marie, to wear clothing he designed for potential buyers. Soon the use of “house models” became common among Parisian fashion houses, and modeling as a profession was born. There were no standards regarding physical measurements. Designers used various size women to show variety in their designs. Today, most agencies require women between 5’9” and 6’0” tall—men 5’11’ and 6’3” tall.

Fashion photography expanded the modeling profession to include photo modeling. Still, most models remained anonymous and poorly paid for their work. In 1946, Ford Modeling Agency created by Eileen and Gerald Ford opened its doors. One of the most popular models during the 1940s was Jinx Falkenburg who earned the huge sum of $25 per hour for her modeling time.

By the 1980s, women were earning enough to make modeling a full time career, traveling abroad and throughout Europe. The rates paid to models continued to rise. In 1990, model Linda Evangelista said to Vogue magazine, “We don’t wake up for less than $10,000 a day”. Soon rates paid supermodels soared much higher. In 1990, Maybelline contracted with model Christy Turlington to pay her $800,000 for twelve days work each year.

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Rush Hour

On May 31, 1868, the first recorded bicycle race was held in Paris, France at Parc de Saint-Cloud. An Englishman named James Moore won the 1.2 km (.7 miles) riding a wooden bicycle with iron tires. Bicycle racing in the early days was a dangerous undertaking. The phrase “breakneck speed” comes from that era because if a rider crashed he would fly over the handlebars resulting in serious injury. In spite of the potential danger(or perhaps because of it) bicycle racing became popular around the world.

As of 2017, the highest paid professional bicycle road racer is Chris Froome who reportedly earned £4 million ($5,132,712.00) per year. This is money paid to an individual who competes in an inaccessible spectator sport where races can be 40 miles or 100 miles. Indoor bicycle track racing, on the other hand, is made for spectators and promoters alike.

Early indoor track races, with paying spectators, attracted up to 2,000 people for each event. At the peak of popularity in the 1930s, six-day races were held at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Yes, the race lasted non-stop for six consecutive days. It was the era of “testing human endurance”. The term “Madison” is still used to describe six-day racing, which now consist of teams or rest periods if individuals race.

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Roboman

Living statues are found In New York City and many other large cities around the world. Using realistic makeup to appear as an actual statue or mannequin, they stand motionless for hours. Sometimes a living statue appears so realistic, a passerby gives no notice to them. Being “too good” can hurt the performer’s earnings, so they move—often startling the person next to them.

The first living statues appeared in the 19th century as part of a circus performance. PT Barnum displayed living statues with his circus tours, which astonished the 1840s circus goer.

During the late 19th and early 20th century the art form known as tableaux vivant emerged. A group of actors posed under carefully placed lighting to create the illusion of a painting. Because the tableaux featuring nude actors and actresses was performed as “art” on stage, the theater censorship laws did not apply. As long as none of the nude performers moved, it was deemed acceptable by the masses.

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Crew Chief

The Bell UH-1 Iroquois helicopter, know as the Huey, became a symbol of combat forces in Vietnam. The Crew Chief was personally responsible for maintaining the helicopter and flew every mission on “his” Huey.

Combat assault deep into enemy territory was the primary mission assignment with each Huey carrying six to eight combat ready Marines. Additional Hueys, outfitted as gunships, provided escort to the LZ (landing zone) and then protected Marines as they exited onto the field of battle.

Other mission assignments included delivering unit replacements, food, water, ammunition and other necessities to infantry units in the field or at forward base locations. The versatile Huey also served as a medevac helicopter, quickly transporting wounded to waiting medical treatment.

Vietnam was the helicopter war, and each had its own sound, but that whup-whup-whup was Huey’s unmistakable signature.

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Water Bubble

David Blaine, magician, illusionist, and endurance artist, made his television debut on ABC May 16, 1997, with “David Blaine: Street Magic”. In addition to magic performances, Blaine is also known for various endurance attempts. For example: entombed for 7 days without food or water in an underground plastic box, incased in a block of ice for more than 63 hours, standing atop a 100 foot pillar on a 22 inch platform for 35 hours, suspended in a sealed transparent box without food or water over the River Thames for 44 days.

The stunt that went wrong was titled “Drowned Alive”. May 1, 2006, Blaine submerged himself inside an 8 foot diameter, water-filled sphere on the mall at Lincoln Center in New York City to set a new record for underwater endurance. At the end of the week-long event, he planned to break the record for holding one’s breath underwater. Two days before the attempt, producers of the live televised special insisted he also escape from handcuffs while holding his breath— to make it more interesting for viewers.

Blaine failed to break the record of 8 minutes, 58 seconds (by just under 2 minutes) when he blacked out and was rescued from the tank. Two years later Blaine held his breath for 17 minutes and 4 seconds while underwater on the Oprah Winfrey show.

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Fishing

Surfcasting is a form of fishing where the angler stands on the shoreline using a surf rod between nine and fourteen feet long. The rod length is one of the most important elements in surfcasting because the lure must land beyond the breaking ocean waves. Veteran surfcasters use the pendulum cast technique to achieve extra distance. The world record for the longest cast is held by Danny Moeskops—313.6 yards.

The pendulum cast lets the lure, or the casting weight, hang down six or more feet below the rod tip. The rod is moved in a swinging motion to create a wide arc with the lure behind the caster. The lure moves through a 350 degree arc as it hurled high toward the ocean.

Just as there are bass fishing competitions on America’s lakes, numerous surfcasting tournaments are held at America’s coastlines. Generally the surfcasting tournaments offer small prizes, usually less than $100, unlike the offshore fishing boat tournaments. In 2016, a man won $2.8 million dollars in the billfish tournament in Ocean City, Maryland. However, when he failed a polygraph test, the U. S. Court of Special Appeals upheld a lower court ruling he cheated and was not entitled his winnings.

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59th Street Bridge

New York City has the largest homeless population of any other American city.

According to the Department of Housing and Urban Development, nearly 30 percent of the country’s homeless with children live in New York City. In September of 2018, 63,025 homeless people, which included 15,421 families with 22,907 homeless children slept each night in the New York City Municipal Shelter System. During the 2017 fiscal year, 129,803 different individuals slept in the city’s shelter system.

An estimated additional 13,000 to 15,000 homeless individuals sleep on the streets or other public places.

Public housing is available through the New York City Housing Authority, but the odds of getting an apartment are not good. There is a waiting list of 260,000 families, and those with higher needs priorities are placed at the top of the list—victims of domestic assault for example.

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Let's Ride

Cowboys, called vaqueros, originated in Mexico, but the American cowboy created the unique lifestyle glamorized in books, movies and television shows. However, the real work of being a cowboy in the old west was less glamorous —rough, grueling and lonely. Average pay was usually $25 to $40 a month.

The lifestyle led to cowboys betting on how skillful they were at bull riding, calf roping, steer wrestling and riding wild horses. The earliest "bronco-busting contest" on record was on July 4, 1869, in Deer Trail, Colorado Territory. Two of the earliest rodeos ever were held in Pecos, Texas, in 1883, the first to give prizes, and in Prescott, Arizona, in 1888, the first to charge admission.

The Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association, PRCA, with its origin roots in 1936 has about 7,000 members (5,138 of whom are currently contestants) and sanctions approximately 600 rodeos a year. In 2013, $39.6 million was paid out in prize money at PRCA rodeos. In 2017, twenty-three year old bull rider Sage Kimzey won $436,479.19 in prize money.

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New York Moment

America’s fourth favorite pet is the parrot. In New York City, the New York Parrot Playgroup, with about 120 members, sets up gatherings where parrots and owners enjoy social play time. Parrots are intelligent, social birds, needing lots of attention and enrichment, otherwise they become bored and stressed.

Perhaps the world’s most famous parrot was one named Alex, the subject of a thirty-year study of avian language and avian learning. Before Alex, scientists believed only primates with a large brain could handle complex problems regarding language and understanding. Birds were not considered intelligent, and it was believed they only mimicked sounds.

During the study, Alex showed intelligence equal to a five-year-old human in some areas. During Alex’s training, Alex would watch two trainers interact. When the two trainers were having a conversation and made mistakes, Alex would correct them. Sometimes when he was alone, Alex was recorded practicing words on his own.

Alex died on September 6, 2007, at the early age of 31. His last words were: “You be good, see you tomorrow. I love you”.

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Race Day

The first motorcycle was bought in 1894 in Germany. The first motorcycle race, about 248 miles, was held a few years later in France. Then in 1906, Britain hosted the Tourist Trophy races on the Isle of Man and motorcycle racing expanded throughout Europe. In 1949 following the second world war, the global governing body of motorcycle racing was formed: FIM (Federation Internationale de Motorcyclisme).

Motorcycle racing in North America began in 1903 when the Federation of American Motorcyclists was formed in New York City with a membership of ninety-three. By 1924 the group evolved into the still active American Motorcyclist Association (AMA), which is the sole United States affiliate of the Federation Internationale de Motorcyclisme. Membership dues that first year were $1.00.

The AMA became the controlling body, insuring competition rules were built around the ideals of safety, fairness and spectator appeal. The first year of sanctioned AMA competition, 1925, saw 56 races and 14 national championships awarded.

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Way of Saint James

The Way of St. James is the pilgrimage to the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia in northwestern Spain, where the tomb of Saint James the Greater was discovered around 820. Shortly thereafter, kings, abbots, monks, and everyday people began a pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela.

Today, more than 300,000 people from around the world leave home each year to make their own pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela. They travel by foot, bicycle, horseback or even donkey of which more than 100,000 are awarded compostela, a certificate of completion of the Way of Saint James.

To receive the compostela, pilgrims purchase a credencial, a document giving access to overnight accommodations on the route. It is also known as the “pilgrim’s passport” because it must be stamped with the official Saint James stamp of each place along the route where the pilgrim ate or stayed. The credencial is proof for the Pilgrim’s Office the journey was accomplished, making the pilgrim eligible for the compostela, a certificate of completion.

The three requirements to receive a compostela: pilgrimage for religious/spiritual reasons, the last 100 km on foot or last 200 km on bicycle, collect a required number of stamps on a credencial.

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