Documentary

Surfing the Greats

January 2, 2021 By Zola Zeester Leave a Comment

It’s certainly not easy to surf Toronto. Some would say impossible. When you’ve got the passion and the right attitude, you really can do just about anything, and at the same time, have fun, make friends and inspire.

See what it takes to catch a wave in the icy cold waters of the Great Lakes in this short documentary On Days Like These We Must Surf by Jake Kovnat.

NASA photo of Great Lakes covered in snow and ice shows how brutal surfing the lakes is during the winter months. — Great Lakes 1/27/2005, NASA Visible Earth, PD

The Great Lakes are a series of five interconnected freshwater lakes (Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron aka Michigan-Huron, Erie, and Ontario) located primarily in the upper mid-east region of North America on the Canada-US border. By total surface area, the Great Lakes are the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth, and they are often referred to as ‘inland seas’ because they look much like oceans with rolling waves, winds, currents, great depths, and distant horizons.

Think you’d like to give lake surfing a try? Surfing the Great Lakes any time of year is difficult. Add the freezing cold winter elements, and it becomes brutal. The best surfing, however, is during the winter months because winter storms generate strong winds that produce the biggest waves that come in super fast. Other challenges involved with lake surfing include wind forecasting, getting the proper gear and board, and avoiding debris in the lake. Not for everybody, and getting images of a sunny beach out of your head is another big challenge.

Information/Resources:
Surf the Greats surf shop, sells gear and boards specifically designed for lake surfing, offers classes on lake surfing and wave forecasting, and organizes meetups and competitions.
NOAA Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory – Scientists study, monitor, and predict ice coverage on the Great Lakes
The Alliance for the Great Lakes, a non-profit organization that works to protect the Great Lakes

Nordurland is about surfing in the harsh, cold waters of the North Atlantic. Watch as three friends from the subtropical northern rivers of NSW Australia travel to isolated, snow covered coastlines in search of remote waves, and discover the great challenges and rewards of a northern adventure. Filmmaker Ishka Folkwell beautifully captures the vast and stunning landscapes, and you’ll see glaciers, mountains and powerful icy surf come to life on screen.

Big wave surfing is an extremely dangerous sport. So, who does it and why? — Free 2 Watch video documentaries capture epic rides as well as personal stories of big waves surfers, including Rodrigo Koxa’s record breaking ride on an 80 foot (24 meter) wave at Nazaré on November 8, 2017.

FREE 2 WATCH – On Demand Great surfing action and stories on the Cranking Surf video channel, an On2In2™️ selection of favorite videos.

Featured image of surfer by George Nietsch/Unsplash CC0

Polar Bear

January 1, 2021 By Zola Zeester Leave a Comment

Cinematographer Dom West and photographer Joshua Holko along with director, Abraham Joffe and crew trekked over 120 miles per day in Svalbard (a Norwegian archipelago in the Arctic Ocean located about midway between continental Norway and the North Pole) to capture polar bears on film for the video documentary, Ghosts of the Arctic. It’s awesome.

Polar bears are marine mammals that have been around for a very long time, and for thousands of years, have been an important figure in the material, spiritual and cultural life of indigenous people throughout the Arctic region. A ‘sister species’ to the brown bear, the polar bear (Ursus maritimus) evolved somewhere around 350,000 – 6 million years ago, and at some point, split off from the brown bear and moved North, during which time a series of evolutionary changes occurred allowing the polar bear to survive the harsh conditions of the Arctic. The polar bear of today has black skin covering a layer of fat up to 4.49 inches (11.4 centimeters) thick, small ears, a short tail, and fur made of dense, insulating underfur with top guard hairs of varying lengths that prevent heat loss, and paws and claws perfect for roaming around the Arctic and swimming.

Home for a polar bear is on the ice in the Arctic region, including Alaska, Canada, Russia, Greenland and Norway (60-80% are in Canada), and it feeds almost exclusively on the fat of ice-dependent seals. As sea ice advances and retreats each season, polar bears may journey thousands of miles to find food, and they rely on the ice to travel, hunt seals, breed, and sometimes den.

Prior to the 1970’s, polar bear populations were in decline as a result of unsustainable hunting and trapping that began as far back as the 1600s, but a 1973 international agreement that strictly regulates commercial hunting helped the population numbers improve. It’s estimated there are currently 22,000-31,000 polar bears in the world. In the 21st century, however, polar bears face additional threats including pollution, oil & gas exploration/development, shipping, human-bear interactions, and climate change as Arctic sea ice is disappearing at an alarming rate. If ice-free periods exceed a polar bear’s fasting ability of 220 days, it will be difficult, if not impossible, for polar bears to survive, especially in areas that lack an alternate food source.

In May 2006, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) added the polar bear to its ‘Red List’ of the world’s most imperiled animals, predicting a 30% reduction in the polar bear population in the next 45 years.

BYU Polar Bear Research Video: Working with Polar Bears International, Brigham Young University Professor of Wildlife Sciences, Tom Smith, and his students are engaged in a multiyear study to monitor maternal polar bear den sites in Alaska and to determine how climate change is impacting these animals.

Information/Resources:
Polar Bear International (Polar Bears 101, Human Interaction, Tracking Map & FAQ)
Defenders of Wildlife – Basic Facts About Polar Bears
World Wide Fund For Nature – Polar Bear Status
International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, Red List of Threatened Species -Polar Bears
Conservation of Polar Bears in Canada, Environment and Climate Change Canada
How a Production Team Broke Cameras and Braved -30° to Shoot Polar Bears in 4K, by Emily Buder, No Film School (August 2, 2017)

Feature photo is a screen shot taken from the Untitled Film Works video, Ghosts of the Arctic
Photo of Arctic polar bear is courtesy of Pixabay/Pexels, CC0

Epic Skimo

November 27, 2020 By Zola Zeester Leave a Comment

Ski Mountaineering (Skimo) involves climbing a mountain on skis or by carrying them and descending on skis using varied ski touring, Telemark, backcountry skiing and mountaineering techniques. A recreational as well as competitive sport, skimo requires a high level of physical ability and stamina along with technical know-how and skills. Enthusiasts enjoy the adventure, variety of terrain, extreme challenges, and pushing limits.

In the mountains, you may find a ‘Netherworld’ … “where pain, grief, joy and exhilaration mix into moments of transcendent beauty”.*

In 2018, ski mountaineers, Hilaree Nelson and Jim Morrison, completed the first ski descent of the 27,940-foot (8,516 m) Mount Lhotse, part of the Everest massif and the fourth-highest mountain in the world. An incredible accomplishment when you consider the extreme challenge of just climbing to the summit of Lhotse (less than 400 climbers have summited Mount Lhotse and at least 20 have died trying), and there have been about a dozen failed attempts to ski down. Video documentary, Lhotse, tells the story of Hilaree and Jim’s extraordinary climb up and ski descent with personal and expert commentary and mind-blowing photography of this “mini-miracle” skimo adventure.

In 2016, Aaron Rice set out to climb and ski 2.5 million vertical feet in the backcountry without using climbing assistance from motorized equipment (e.g., chair lifts, helicopters), challenging the world record of 2 million vertical feet set by Greg Hill in 2010. It’s an epic endurance test as Aaron must chase after snow around the world and ski more than 330 days in order to accomplish his record breaking goal. Watch this amazing journey in the short video 2.5 million, filmed, directed and edited by Tyler Wilkinson-Ray.

Video documentary Follow Through tells the story of skier Caroline Gleich’s motivation and determination to ski the 90 difficult and insanely dangerous ski mountaineering lines in the backcountry of Utah’s Wasatch Mountains first described by ski mountaineer Andrew McLean in his **1998 book “The Chuting Gallery: A Guide to Steep Skiing in the Wasatch Mountains”.

Information/Resources:

International Ski Mountaineering Federation – governing body for ski mountaineering competitions
United States Ski Mountaineering Association – sanctions and governs competitive ski mountaineering racing in US, and promotes recreational ski mountaineering. The USSMA website includes how-to information, resource links and videos.
*The Long Road To Lhotse by David Bunker, Tahoe Quarterly, Winter 2018-19

Avalanches are a powerful and deadly threat to ski mountaineers as well as anyone living or playing in snow-covered mountainous areas; therefore, no one should venture out in the backcountry unless up to speed on avalanche safety and accident prevention measures.

You should also watch Adventure Skiing (Free to Watch, On-Demand video documentaries) Adventure skiers travel the world, discovering great beauty and dangers in the mountain landscapes of Europe, Asia, North and South America, and the Middle East.

We’d love to hear from you! If you’d like to comment on this post, join the conversation, or share your inspiration, and you have not yet registered as an On2In2™ playmaker, please sign up via the ‘Engage page’. Don’t worry, it’s pretty quick and easy.

**Zeester Media LLC may receive a small commission for a book purchase you make via the link to Amazon within this page. This in no way affects the price you pay for the purchase.

Feature photo is courtesy of Robson Hatsukami Morgan/Unsplash, CC0

Silver King

November 22, 2020 By Zola Zeester Leave a Comment

Tarpons are large, air breathing fish of the genus, Megalops, and they’ve been swimming the seas for 18 million years. There are two species, both found in saltwater as well as freshwater habitats. Megalops cyprinoides (Indo-Pacific tarpon) populate the east African coast, southeast Asia, Japan, Tahiti, and Australia. Megalops atlanticus (Atlantic tarpon, aka ‘Silver King’) is native to the Atlantic, and found along the western Atlantic coast from the US state of Virginia to Brazil, throughout the coast of the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean, and on the eastern Atlantic coast from Senegal to South Angola. Since the mid-1960s, there’s been a significant decline of Atlantic tarpon populations in the Gulf of Mexico, most dramatically at Port Aransas, Texas, likely the result of damming of rivers, toxic run-off, dredging of canals and shipping channels, and overfishing.

“He is a battle flotilla in full blazing armor, and peace and good will are not in him for an instant.” — Henry Wellington Wack

In 1885, the first tarpon was caught on a rod & reel in Florida. After more than 130 years, tarpon is still considered one of the great saltwater game fish because of its size (tarpon reach a length of 4–8 feet and weigh 60–250+ pounds), extraordinary ability to jump high out of the water, and fast, powerful fight at the end of the line. It’s tough to hook and land a tarpon—about one in eight hookups are successful catches, and a challenge to locate as they’re a warm-water migratory fish.

Florida is considered one of the world’s top destinations for tarpon fishing, with “hot spots” at Boca Grande in southwest Florida, Homosassa, and the Florida Keys. High season is May through July, but records indicate all sizes are caught throughout the year. Other places on the best tarpon fishing list: Yucatan Peninsula (year round); Costa Rica (Fall season); Angola (Dec – Feb); Gabon (late Oct – early Jan); Guinea-Bissau (Feb – March)

WATCH the THRILL of the CATCH! 120 Days: Tarpon Season, a short documentary video that captures a close-up view of the sport, featuring tarpon fishing guide, David Magnum, in his fervent search for the Silver King in the beautiful waters of Florida.

Information/Resources:

Tarpon, Texas Parks and Wildlife
Tarpon, Florida Parks and Wildlife Research Institute
Atlantic Tarpon, University of Southern Mississippi
Tarpon Research, Bonefish and Tarpon Trust
Megalops atlanticus-Gulf of Mexico, assessed “Vulnerable” by the International Union of Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources
The Silver Kings – Once so plentiful. Where did they go? by Stephen Harrigan, Texas Monthly (May, 2013) [Veteran fishing guides recall a time when Port Aransas, Texas was known as “The Tarpon Capital of the World”]

Ready for more water sport adventure? Watch as 8 paddlers set out to break the rafting speed record through the Grand Canyon on the wild and dangerous Colorado River in The Time Travelers video

We’d love to hear from you! If you’d like to comment on this article, join the conversation, or share your inspiration, and you have not yet registered as an On2In2™ playmaker, please sign up via the ‘Engage page’. Don’t worry, it’s pretty quick and easy (unless you’re a robot).

Feature photo by Flickr user, Jack, CC BY-NC-ND

The Last Moonwalk

November 15, 2020 By Zola Zeester 1 Comment

Project Apollo was a NASA spaceflight program dedicated to the goal of “landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth” proposed by President John F. Kennedy on May 25, 1961 during an address to the joint session of Congress. From 1969 to 1972, six Apollo missions made successful Moon landings, and twelve men walked on the Moon.

The final mission of the Apollo program, Apollo 17, launched on December 7, 1972 for a 12 day journey to the Moon and back. It was the last time humans traveled beyond 1,240 miles (2,000km) from Earth, landed on the Moon, and walked its surface. During a three day stay on the Moon, Apollo 17 astronauts, Eugene A. Cernan (mission commander), and Harrison H. Schmitt (lunar modular pilot) made three walks (totaling 22 hours, 2 minutes) while Ronald E. Evans (command module pilot) remained in lunar orbit in the command service module.

I’m on the surface; and, as I take man’s last step from the surface, back home for some time to come – but we believe not too long into the future – I’d like to just [say] what I believe history will record. That America’s challenge of today has forged man’s destiny of tomorrow. And, as we leave the Moon at Taurus-Littrow, we leave as we came and, God willing, as we shall return, with peace and hope for all mankind. ‘Godspeed the crew of Apollo 17’. — Eugene A. Cernan, Apollo 17 mission commander

Man has been fascinated with the Moon for thousands of years, and moon gazing is an aesthetic custom with a spiritual component.

The international Cassini mission has resulted in dramatic photos and new discoveries during an amazing 20-year exploratory journey to Saturn.

The short documentary “Overview” (from Planetary Collective) explores a cosmic worldview with reflections from “Earth gazing” astronauts and philosophers as well as beautiful space imagery. Watch it, and be inspired by the “unity and oneness of all life on Earth”.

The feature photo of Apollo 17 mission commander, Eugene A. Cernan, was taken by astronaut/lunar module pilot, Harrison H. Schmitt, on December 13, 1972 (NASA, Public Domain). Cernan is the last human to have walked on the Moon.

Information/References:

Apollo Space Suit in 3D – View every detail (close-up/inside & out) of the space suit that made walking on the moon possible (Smithsonian Digitized 3D)
Spaceflight NASA: The Apollo 17 Mission
NASA’s Return to the Moon. On November 29, 2018, NASA announced plans are underway to send humans back to the surface of the moon and on to Mars.

In the Shadow of the Moon (2007) is an award-winning documentary that will take you back to the years of the Apollo mission through archival footage and the surviving astronauts telling their personal stories about what it was like to fly to the moon and back. Click/Tap the image to view via Amazon (If you purchase a product or service directly through the link, Zeester Media LLC may earn a small commission. This in no way affects the price you pay for the purchase.)

On July 16, 1969, the huge, 363-feet tall Saturn V rocket launches on the Apollo 11 mission from Pad A, Launch Complex 39, Kennedy Space Center, at 9:32 a.m. EDT. — Apollo 11 Launch, July 16, 1969, NASA PD

Continuing through 2019, a new, state-of the art traveling exhibition, Destination Moon: The Apollo Mission, commemorates the first lunar landing in 1969 with tour stops in Houston (October 14, 2017–March 18, 2018), Saint Louis (April 14–September 3, 2018), Pittsburgh (September 29, 2018–February 18, 2019), and Seattle (March 16–Sept. 2, 2019) before returning to the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC for permanent display. [Photo of Apollo 11 launch on July 16, 1969, from Pad A, Launch Complex 39, Kennedy Space Center, at 9:32am ED]

Retreat of Exit Glacier

November 13, 2020 By Zola Zeester Leave a Comment

Located in Kenai Fjords National Park, Alaska, Exit Glacier is one of 38 interconnected valley glaciers in the Harding Icefield, the largest ice field contained completely within the United States. In the spring of 1968, the first documented mountaineering party succeeded in crossing the Harding Icefield, and Exit Glacier was given its name for serving as the exit off the ice field during the expedition.

Exit Glacier is one of Harding Icefield’s smaller glaciers, but is one of the most visited because of year-round, easy access by a roadway and hiking trails around and above the glacier. When snow arrives in the area (usually mid-November) until early May each year, the access road is closed to cars but open to a wide range of winter sports and recreation, including snowmobiles, dogsleds, fat-tire bicycles, cross-country skiing and snowshoeing.

According to park research studies and recent enhanced monitoring and mapping, Exit Glacier has retreated about a mile in the past 100 years, and shrinking has escalated during the last few years with 187 feet (57 meters) lost from 2013-14 and another 136 feet (41.5 meters) in 2015.

Filmakers, Raphael Rogers, Kristin Gerhart and Paul Rennick, traveled to Alaska to explore Exit Glacier, but along with stunningly beautiful mountain views and amazing blue ice, they saw melting. Local guide, Rick Brown, explained what they were seeing and what’s been happening at Exit Glacier in this short video documentary, Glacier Exit.

Understanding Valley Glaciers

In order to understand why glaciers are considered a visual indicator of climate change, it helps to understand some basics about glacier formation, movement and their sensitivity to fluctuations in temperature.

Exit Glacier is what is known as a valley glacier (aka alpine glacier) that forms when more snow falls on mountain peaks during a year than melts during the summer, creating a snow pack that builds up and thickens. Over time, the weight of the snow causes the snow pack to compress and turn into ice, and the glacier grows as more and more snow and ice accumulate. Then, the weight of the ice starts to slowly push down the mountain through the valley. This downward movement of the glacier is hardly noticeable to the observer, but it’s a powerful force of nature that erodes the ground beneath it, stripping the valley floor and knocking loose rocks and debris. Along the way down, the glacier becomes a mixture of rock, dirt and ice.

While snow falls in the cold, higher elevation temperatures at the top of the glacier (the ‘accumulation zone’) during valley glacier formation, the ice is continually melting in the warmer area at the bottom of the glacier (the ‘ablation zone’). If the accumulation at the top pushes ice down the valley faster than the ice melts at the bottom, the glacier advances. When ice at the bottom melts faster than ice accumulates and moves down from the top, the glacier recedes.

During a glacier recession, ice and rock continue to flow downhill to the toe of the glacier (the end of the glacier at any given point in time, aka ‘terminus’ or ‘snout’), and the rocks are then continuously deposited on the ground at the front edge of the glacier as the ice melts. During periods of ‘stagnation’, the ice at the front of the glacier melts at essentially the same rate as the ice flows down, resulting in the toe of the glacier staying in one place. Rock and debris, however, continue to be pushed downward to the front edge of the glacier where it is deposited as the ice melts away.

Information/Resources:

Exit Glacier – visitor information. How to get up close to the glacier and explore the area.

The Retreat of Exit Glacier by Susan Huse

Kenai Fjords National Park (Where Mountains, Ice and Ocean Meet) – learn more, plan your visit, get involved

Physical Science in Kenai Fjords, by Virginia Valentine, Keith Echelmeyer, Susan Campbell, Sandra Zirnheld (Alaska Park Science: Volume 3 / Issue 1, 2004)

⇒ Exit Glacier conditions (May 28, 2018 update), an ice fall hazard zone was identified by Kenai Fjords park officials at the toe and sides of Exit Glacier. The condition is dangerous due to tall blocks and slabs of ice, and entry into the ice fall hazard zone is prohibited; however, the road to Exit Glacier and hiking trails remain open.

Located above the Chamonix valley within the Mont Blanc massif mountain range of the French Alps, the valley glacier, Mer de Glace (‘Sea of Ice’), is the largest and longest glacier in France and a popular tourist attraction as it offers spectacular mountain views as well as tours, exhibits, off-piste ski runs, and restaurant/hotel. Unfortunately, it has also been retreating during the last 30 years.

Artist Zaria Forman captures the massive, but fragile beauty of amazing ice and snow formations in her work, and reminds us how important glaciers are to every living being on Earth, now and in the future.

Feature image “Toe of Exit Glacier” is courtesy of the US National Park Service/Paige Calamari, PD. The 2011 photo of the toe of Exit Glacier was taken from the Outwash Plain below. Since that time, warmer temperatures have reduced the glacier mass of Exit Glacier, and it will likely never look like this photo again.

Activist Arts

October 30, 2020 By Zola Zeester Leave a Comment

“If art is to nourish the roots of our culture, society must set the artist free to follow his vision wherever it takes him… We must never forget that art is not a form of propaganda; it is a form of truth.” — John F. Kennedy

Throughout history, art has been created by people for many different reasons and purposes, both non-motivated (no specific-purpose other than a basic human instinct to create) and motivated (e.g., the artist intends to communicate a specific emotion, comment on an aspect of society, or bring about political or cultural change), and works of art have often been controversial for a variety of reasons, provoking intense debate, criticism and indignation as well as influencing new ideas and shifts in prevailing sentiment.

An art movement is art with a specific common goal among a group of artists for a certain period of time (months, years or decades). There have been many diverse art movements during the 19^th and 20^th centuries, their meanings and objectives explained by the artists involved in the movement or art critics and historians.

In the US, the ‘60s were years of social unrest and cultural change, and contemporary artists responded to the turmoil and addressed the issues by producing creative works of activism. The Black Arts Movement (1965-75), aka Black Aesthetics Movement or BAM, emerged when a group of African American artists were inspired by the Black Power movement to create expressive works of poetry, novels, visual arts, and theater that reflected pride in black history and culture and explored the African American experience as a means of arousing black consciousness. Although it began in New York, BAM spread across the country and influenced a generation of artists.

In Southern California, the Black Arts Movement generated new forms of artistic and cultural expression and the development of community-based arts organizations in an effort to end discrimination in entertainment industries and focus attention on the conditions within black working class neighborhoods.

In her book South of Pico*, MacArthur winner and Columbia University professor Kellie Jones explores how artists in Los Angeles black communities during the 1960s and 1970s created a vibrant, engaged activist arts scene amidst racism and social upheaval. Building on her research and work on the Hammer Museum exhibition Now Dig This! Art and Black Los Angeles, 1960–1980, Dr. Jones, along with a discussion panel including UCLA professor Robin D.G. Kelly, will expand your understanding of the history of black arts in Los Angeles and beyond. If you missed the live broadcast of this event, there’s still time to watch a video recording. Just click/tap the “Watch Again” button or the post located on the video player below ↓

Creative Perspectives – artists reveal thoughts and feelings about their work and living a creative life in this On2In2™ video collection, available to watch free & on-demand.

Find out how you can help with art history research right from home, and discover the life of an artist using a very cool, free to
use online tool “AnnoTate”

Information/Resources:

Political Change from the 1960’s to Now: Connections Between Arts and Activist Movements by Andrea Assuf (The Public Humanist, Massachusetts Foundation for the Humanities, October 30, 2009)
On Black Aesthetics: The Black Arts Movement by Candice Frederick (New York Public Library, July 15, 2016)
The Black Arts Movement (blacklist.org)
Witness: Art and Civil Rights in the Sixties (Brooklyn Museum)
Wikipedia (Art and Art movement)

*Zeester Media LLC may receive a small commission for a book purchase you make via the link within this page. This in no way affects the price you pay for the purchase.

Feature photo is courtesy of Pixabay CC0

The Overview Effect

October 25, 2020 By Zola Zeester Leave a Comment

The iconic Earthrise photo was taken in 1968 by NASA astronaut William A. Anders during the Apollo 8 mission, the first manned spaceflight to orbit the Moon. Never before had a human observed the Earth rising, and Anders’ amazing, first-ever color photo of our stunningly beautiful planet emerging from a lunar horizon still takes your breath away.

“We came all this way to explore the Moon, and the most important thing is that we discovered the Earth.” — William A. Anders

To See The Earth As It Truly Is*

[su_quote cite=”Frank Borman “]It was very, very sobering to see this little blue marble in the middle of all that darkness. [/su_quote]

The awe-inspiring effect of seeing the whole Earth from the vantage of space (known as “Earth gazing”) is most often described as an overwhelming sense that Earth is an “interconnected whole with one destiny”. An understanding that’s key to our survival. Of course, we can’t see it and feel it firsthand (only 24 humans out of 7.3 billion world population have had the experience) until space travel becomes practical for the general public, but innovative technology continues to provide us with more and better information and visuals.

The short documentary Overview (from Planetary Collective) explores a cosmic worldview with reflections from “Earth gazing” astronauts and philosophers as well as beautiful space imagery. Watch and be inspired by the “unity and oneness of all life on Earth”.

Earthrise: Remembering Apollo 8. Launched on December 21, 1968, Apollo 8 became the first manned spacecraft to reach the Moon, orbit it and return, and its crew became the first humans to see and photograph the Earth emerging from behind the lunar horizon. Watch as the Griffith Lab All Space Considered team recalls the lead up, events and discoveries of this historic mission in celebration of its 50th anniversary.

*”To see the earth as it truly is, small and blue and beautiful in that eternal silence where it floats, is to see ourselves as riders on the earth together, brothers on that bright loveliness in the eternal cold — brothers who know now they are truly brothers.” Archibald MacLeish (1892 – 1982) American poet

Take a virtual ride on a satellite for awesome views of Earth

Apollo 17 photo taken December 13, 1972 on the lunar surface — Moonwalk (December 13, 1972) NASA

Want to see more of what’s out there in space? The short video documentary, “The Last Steps” will take you to a ‘back to the future’ moment in time with original film footage, photographs and audio recordings from Apollo 17, NASA’s final Apollo program mission, and the last time a human walked on the moon. Watch more “out of this world” videos via the “Cosmos Channel“, free to watch, on-demand.

A retrospective look at discoveries and images of Saturn
captured during the 20 year Cassini Mission, plus some
info on when and how you can see Saturn in 2017

“The Overview Effect” is an edited version of an article originally published on the “Zblog” by Zeester Media LLC.

Earthrise photo credit: NASA

Primo Video Channels

September 30, 2020 By Zola Zeester Leave a Comment

The film shorts for each On2In2™ primo video channel were especially selected by Zola to entertain and share with you. They are different in context, theme, production technique and length, and you’ll find a variety of genres and compelling stories as well as some inconsequential, unconventional and laughable narratives. The video channels are edited and changed up now and again with new feature videos, and new channels added, too. Sign up to get On2In2™ media updates via email.

All primo videos are free to watch thanks to generous sharing by the talented creators involved in the film production, their sponsors and the Vimeo filmmaking community as well as other media sources, e.g. BBC Earth. Editor’s Note: As with all media content within the On2In2™ website, the Primo Video Channels are intended for adult audiences, not children. The content of a few of the videos includes expletives, violence and erotic scenes.

» Just click/tap on a channel below to get started and enjoy the shows.

Biodoc: LIFE INSPIRED You’ll laugh, smile, cry and be amazed by the people and stories told in these documentaries.

Biodoc: SUPER DOGS Mother loves doggie videos, and we have to agree, dogs can steal any show and your heart. The Super Dogs channel was created in memory of Duke and Cary, two very special and much loved dogs.

Comedy: PEOPLE & PHONES The use/misuse of a ubiquitous communication device is always good for a laugh.

Comedy of Manners: FINDING #LOVE It’s a complicated subject, and that’s what makes it such a provocative story line.

FRIGHT NIGHT MOVIES This wicked collection of videos is good for a dark night marathon viewing of thrillers. There’s a variety of terror to enjoy: suspense, action, mystery, horror, psycho and the supernatural.

espnW Series: RUN MAMA RUN While training for the Olympics, Sarah Bowman Brown faces difficult choices and challenges with an unexpected pregnancy, but she never gives up on her dream. She tells the story of her journey in this five part series.

The COSMOS Channel Take an On2In2™ starship ride with us,
and explore the Universe

MUSIC VIDEO MASHUP A collection of eclectic music videos (new & old) because we’re nostalgic for the days of 24-7 music video channels.

Visual Soundscapes: PLANET EARTH Video Series No commentary on the videos in this series, only breathtaking sights and sounds of nature: Island Sounds, Mountain Sounds, Jungle Sounds, and Desert Sounds

⇒ There’s more to see & do On2In2™

Take a look at the Live Stream Program Guide for information on live broadcasts of sports and entertainment

Search the MEDIA MIX category in the main menu for live streaming, videos and music (all free to enjoy)

Primo Video Channels feature photo courtesy of Tookapic/Pexels CC0

A Collector’s Passion

September 24, 2020 By Zola Zeester Leave a Comment

The hobby of collecting is defined as the “seeking, locating, acquiring, organizing, cataloging, displaying, storing, and maintaining whatever items are of interest to the individual collector”, and the range of collections is well,….. unlimited because there are no rules in collecting and collectors’ passions are as diverse and unique as each individual collector.

Collecting also has a long history that can be traced to book collecting in ancient Egypt, art patronage and collecting during the Italian Renaissance period (14^th – 16^th centuries), and the acquisition by affluent scholars of unusual items (called “cabinet of curiosities”) beginning in the 16^th century.

There are many theories as to what compels so many of us to collect things. Like rubber bands — oh yes, @zeester must admit to a compulsion to collect rubber bands, sea shells, rocks and wine corks. The yen felt by collectors may be connected to the human ‘hunter – gatherer’ survival instinct, but could also be fulfilling some psychological need relating to aspects of memory, organization, or purpose. Whatever the reason, hobby collectors find fun in collecting as well as profit, and their personal stories are as fascinating as the collections they’ve created.

Billy Wilder (1906-2002), a legendary filmmaker, was an avid art collector. He described his passion for collecting as a “sickness”, and said, “I don’t know how to stop myself…………Name an object and I collect it.” There is no denying, however, Wilder enjoyed his hobby, saying it was “more fun than making movies”, and he acquired one of the finest and most extensive art collections in Hollywood. In 1989, a large selection of paintings and sculptures from his collection sold at auction for $32.6 million.

Edward Wharton-Tigar (1913-95), a decorated WWII British spy and business executive with a passion for cricket and collecting, amassed the world’s largest collection of cigarette cards (over 2 million). His entire collection which includes a rare T206 Honus Wagner card is held by the British Museum. After more than 75 years of collecting, Wharton-Tigar considered his “collector’s mania” an inherited trait. “My mother had it and so did my grandmother. If you have it, you have it. There is simply nothing you can do about it. You are driven by this desire to complete things.”

It’s a WOW — an old garage full of beautiful classic cars! Lenny Shiller from Brooklyn NY talks about his motivation to collect classic cars and the enjoyment he has working on his eclectic collection in the video Lenny’s Garage from Bullrush Films.

Ξ More collectors tell their stories ⇒ WATCH: Collector Confessions

In Heads and Tales: The Odyssey of a Medals Collector, art collector and historian, Stephen K. Scher, tells the story behind the building of his medals collection, including the motivation, temptations, mistakes, and successes. It’s a rare opportunity to learn from a collector’s personal experience.

We’d love to hear from you! Collecting, as with many hobbies, can lead to social connections and new friendships. You can connect with people sharing similar interests by joining the On2In2™ social network via the “Engage” page.

Information/References:
Wikipedia: Collecting, T206 Honus Wagner
The Los Angeles Times, November 14, 1989 (Wilder Auction)
The New York Times, August 30, 1989 (Wilder Auction)
The Independent, September 3, 1994 (First Hand: I constantly dream about my card collection)

Feature photo of a troll doll collector is courtesy of Grastisographry CC0

Documentary

Surfing the Greats

Polar Bear

Epic Skimo

Silver King

The Last Moonwalk

Retreat of Exit Glacier

Activist Arts

The Overview Effect

Primo Video Channels

A Collector’s Passion

MUCH 2 SEE

THINGS 2 DO

PLACES 2 GO

PEOPLE 2 MEET

FOOD & DRINKS

JUST LAUGHS

Documentary

Footer

MUCH 2 SEE

THINGS 2 DO

PLACES 2 GO

PEOPLE 2 MEET

FOOD & DRINKS

JUST LAUGHS