The new book Art=(Phaidon) is a stream of creative consciousness that leaps around the globe and across 6,000 years of art history. To tell this unorthodox story, the book examines 800 works of art and other objects from the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Here, weve excerpted an array of images and texts that show how a reader might wander from the history of gold in the Americas, to a gold Colombian pendant, to a painting of dancers by Colombian artist Fernando Botero, to a study of Sufi dance, to a book by the Sufi poet Hafiz, and finally to a history of book arts in the Middle Ages.

In the ancient Americas, gold was a manifestation of the sacred, and objects fashioned from it were a means of connecting with a supernatural world. Far from being passive deposits of wealth, objects made of gold were active agents in an ongoing engagement with powerful forces. Gold was particularly closely associated with the sun; indeed, it was often thought of as an excretion of this divine entity.

Gold was highly valued for its rarity and ability to reflect light, making it a natural choicefor displays of rank and authority. Its immunity to decay has made it a potent symbol for immortality and enduring power worldwide, yet parts of the ancient American world never fell under the sway of gold. For example, the Classic Maya, who flourished in what are now Honduras, Guatemala, Belize, and southern Mexico, displayed little interest in the metal, despite its extensive use by neighbors to the south.

Gold was first exploited in the Andes by the second millennium BC, and from there goldworking gradually spread north, reaching Central America by the first centuries AD and arriving in central Mexico before the end of the first millennium AD. Metalworking was adopted later than other arts in Mexico, but the technology was quickly mastered, and the brilliance and inventiveness of Mixtec and Aztec goldworking traditions remain second to none. For example, a gold labretan ornament worn through the lower lipcast in the shape of a serpent ready to strike, is a tour-de-force of Aztec metal-working (p.105, fig.4). The artists who fashioned it not only mastered the essentials of lost-wax casting but took them one step further, by casting the serpents retractable tongue as a moving part, creating a gleaming, dynamic ornament that must have terrified the wearers enemies on the battlefield.

In the ancient Americas, gold was used primarily to create high-status regalia, including ornaments and vessels, but it was also occasionally used in votive objects, such as small figurines deposited in sacred wells, lakes, or temples, removed from circulation and human view. More often, however, gold was deployed by high-ranking individuals as part of carefully orchestrated performances designed to project magnificence. Dramatic visual effects were paramount, and ancient American artists created ingenious headdresses, collars, and other works, often with multiple components such as dangles or bells, that were designed to reflect light and to dazzle. Such ornaments were, in large part, about establishing identities, asserting status, privilege, and distinction. Sumptuary laws controlled who was able to own what; in both the Inca and Aztec empires, gold was limited to individuals upon whom the emperor had bestowed the privilege, such as members of the royal family and the nobility.

Most ornaments were worn on or near the head, emphasizing its prominence as a locus of perception and communication, and perhaps offering symbolic protection to one of the most vulnerable parts of the body. Artists excelled at creating ornaments for the ears and chest (p.027, fig.4, 6), locations that offer prominence and options for attachment without obstructing sensory functions. In South America, however, artists also created nose ornaments (p.127, fig.5). Suspended from the nasal septum, they would obscure the mouth, masking its movements and perhaps contributing to the projection of the wearer as a supernatural being. In the Andes, elaborate gold vessels became prominent in ritual and statecraft in the latter half of the first millennium AD. Metalsmiths on Perus north coast developed a near-industrial level production of beakers made from gold sheet, presumably used in life before they were deposited by the dozen in tombs of high-status individuals. Perhaps the most spectacular objects from this region are large funerary masks, also made of sheet gold. Cinnabar, a red mineral pigment, covered much of the cheeks and forehead of some masks, obscuring the gold surface and suggesting that inherent values of the metal were prized above its surface appearance.

In the sixteenth century, the Spaniards seemingly insatiable appetite for gold puzzled Indigenous Americans, and things of incalculable value to themsuch as spondylus shells, greenstones, and fine textileswere initially ignored by Europeans. TheSpaniards bottomless desire for gold led to one of the most devastating losses of life in global history, through dangerous forced labor in mines but primarily through the introduction of diseases against which the native population had no resistance. Though some objects were sent back to Europe as curiosities, most works of Precolumbian gold were melted down into ingots for ease of transport and trade. Gold, perhaps the most mutable of metals, would be reborn in a new form, remade in the service of new kings and a new god. It would not be until the late nineteenth century that Precolumbian works of art in gold would be valued in their original form, rather than for their material.

Figure Pendant, 10th16th century. Tairona culture, Colombia. Gold. Gift of H. L. Bache Foundation, 1969. Image courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Works in gold made by the Tairona people of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta in north Colombia emphasize volume and three-dimensional form. This figure is part of a small group called caciques (cheiftans) because of their flamboyant, awe-inspiring appearance. Caciques range from one to six inches in height and are hollow, cast by the lost-wax method in tumbaga to achieve remarkable detail. Loops in the back indicate that they were worn as pendants.

The page of South American art from Art=, featuring Fernando Boteros Dancing in Colombia (1980).

Boteros art often depicts people at leisure, shown drinking or dancing. They may seem humorous, but they are often laden with social and political commentary. Dancing in Colombia depicts a lively caf scene, overcrowded with seven musicians, two dancers, and a jukebox. Details such as the floor littered with cigarettes and fruit and the exposed light bulbs on the ceiling suggest that the caf is rather seedy, attracting clients of a decadent and perhaps immoral nature. One can imagine odors of sweat, tobacco, liquor, and cheap cologne, or the rooms upstairs that can be rented by the hour, although none of this is explicit. Curiously, there is a vast difference in deameanor between the twogroups of figures. The musicians stare blankly and seem to be part of an inanimate still life. They are the backdrop for the inexplicably smaller couple who dance with wild abandon, hair and legs flying. Like other works from this period, the surface of this painting is smooth, with few traces of brushwork; color is muted, although small areas of red, yellow, and green appear garishly bright.

Dancing Dervishes, Folio from a Divan of Hafiz, c.1480. Painting attributed to Bihzad. Opaque watercolor and gold on paper. Rogers Fund, 1917. Image courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

This painting shows dervishes in the mystical ceremony of the sama, in which whirling and dancing are accompanied by music and recitations of a dhikr, a repetition of the name of God. In their mystical dance, Sufis achieve an ecstatic state, facilitating their connection to God. In the foreground, dervishes are shown in various stages of entrancement and exhaustion, their scattered turbans thrown aside in the bliss of divine ecstasy.

The Belles Heures of Jean de France, duc de Berry, 140508/09. The Limbourg Brothers. Tempera, gold, ink on vellum.The Cloisters Collection, 1954. Image courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Probably created in Paris, the Belles Heures, or Beautiful Hours, a private devotional book, is one of the most sumptuous manuscripts to have survived from the Middle Ages. Commissioned by Jean de France from the Limbourg brothers, the most gifted artists of their time, it is the only manuscript completed by them in its entirety. The richly illustrated text is enhanced by seven unprecedented picture cycles devoted to Christian figures or events that held special significance for the duke. Using a luminous palette, the artists blended an intimate Northern vision of nature with Italianate modes of figural articulation. The keen interest in the natural world and the naturalistic means of representing it, so striking in the 172 illuminations, foreshadow the work of Jan van Eyck and the ensuing generations of outstanding 15th-century South Netherlandish painters.

Excerpted from Art =. Discovering Infinite Connections in Art History, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Phaidon.

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A New Book Tells 6,000 Years of Art History Through the Close Study of Treasures at the Metropolitan MuseumRead Excerpts Here - artnet News

For decades, the president's number two was largely ignored and limited to boring ceremonial duties: Before his death, Franklin Roosevelt didn't even tell Harry S Truman about the atom bomb. The indignity heaped on number twos has been encapsulated by Robert Caro in his most recent biographical volume on Lyndon Johnson who was treated like dirt by the Kennedy brothers and in the HBO comedy "Veep," when the hilariously self-serving Selina Meyer repeatedly and pathetically asks: "Has the President called?"

Some veeps did eventually find places among history's most significant presidents, like the 20th-century trio of Truman, Johnson and Theodore Roosevelt, who all succeeded dead superiors. The job has also improved in recent years: Though current Vice President Mike Pence appears to view his role as showering praise on his boss every time a camera is near, the three vice presidents before him were unusually influential: Al Gore, Dick Cheney and Biden himself had genuine authority and significant assignments.

And it's hard to see a President Biden running for a second term that would begin when he is 82. So his vice president could automatically become the Democratic front-runner in 2024, and might even be able to avoid a prolonged primary campaign altogether.

2019 vs. 2020

From Trump with love

Sometimes it's hard to spot the difference between the President of the United States and a Kremlin spokesman. Donald Trump's deference to Russian President Vladimir Putin has yet to be adequately explained, but it's undeniable that he often seems to be reading a list of Moscow's talking points -- especially when he's recently spoken with the ex-KGB man.

Trump often also seems to advance Russia's national security interests as much as America's, and did so as recently as Wednesday by ordering thousands of US troops out of Germany, carving another divide in NATO. He's also still trying to get Russia back into the G7, after it was kicked out for annexing Crimea.

'I might have put ... some of the virus onto the mask'

Congressional hearing stunts

The US Congress has a vital constitutional role to hold the president and his administration to account. Over the years, moments of stellar parliamentary inquiry have changed politics and the world: The wartime Senate Committee on the National Defense Program chaired by then-Senator Harry S Truman, for example, investigated profiteering. In the 1970s, a Senate Select Committee's bipartisan probe unearthed key aspects of the Watergate scandal that eventually brought President Richard Nixon down.

Ohio's Representative Jim Jordan spouted a string of hard-to-follow conspiracy theories about the Russia investigation, then played spliced-together videos of violence in US cities meant to demonstrate an epidemic of leftist violence. He got into a spat with another combustible member, Maryland Democrat Jamie Raskin, after he took off his mask -- and then turned on a dime to raise false claims about an Obama administration plot to target Trump aides for surveillance.

Barr, performing for the President, and Democrats, with their own political incentives, staged vocal clashes. Colorado Democrat Joe Neguse tripped up Barr by asking if he stands by a claim that the White House fully cooperated with the Russia investigation. "I have to answer that question. ... I'm going to answer the damn question!" Barr said, as Neguse tried to cut him off.

In another case of a friend of Trump's doing the President's work, Florida Republican Matt Gaetz accused Google CEO Sundar Pichai on Wednesday of being in league with the Chinese military, during a hearing of tech titans that included Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg and Amazon's Jeff Bezos.

You sometimes have to pity the witness. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton sat through 11 hours of Republican tomfoolery during a 2015 hearing that was transparently intended to damage her presidential campaign. But her eye rolls and temple rubs spawned viral memes.

Sometimes the entertainment in congressional hearings is inadvertent, and exposes the body's most venerable members to ridicule as they catch up on the topic at hand. The late Senator Ted Stevens secured immortality when the Alaska Republican described the internet not as a truck to dump things on but as "a series of tubes." And in 2018, Republican Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah appeared to amuse Zuckerberg by asking how Facebook made its billions.

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The curse of the vice presidency and legendary congressional hearing stunts - CNN

Kathy Bates has played several characters in American Horror Story. Not only have they all been killed, but her characters suffered similar injuries.

Kathy Bates is a recurring face of American Horror Story, but her various characters have a habit of getting killed off in very brutal ways. The actress first joined the FX anthology in 2013 for season 3's Coven. In total, Bates appeared in five seasons of Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk's show thus far, and several times, she played more than one character. After skipping out on season 9, Bates will make her series return for the show's upcoming season 10.

As one of the American Horror Story veterans, Bates is accustomed to the show's emphasis on death and despair. That said, the actress probably didn't expect to play characters who never make it out alive in their respective seasons. Some of her characters were based on historical figures, while others were created solely for the TV show. Either way, the characters portrayed by Bates were unable to escape gruesome deaths.

Related:American Horror Story: What Happened To Kyle After Coven

Throughout her series run to this point, Bates played six characters. On a few occasions, she portrayed more than one figure, or reprised a role from a previous season. Interestingly enough, Bates' characters died in similar ways, with an emphasis being on head or neck injuries. Even though the cast nor the crew have confirmed why this is, it seems like more than just a coincidence. Let's take a look at all of the ways that characters played by Bates have met their ends in American Horror Story.

Bates first played Madame Marie Delphine LaLaurie in Coven. The wealthy socialite from the 1800s was granted immortality, but buried alive for torturing and killing slaves before she was discovered by coven members. After trying to make up for her past, she was granted a real death at the hands of Queenie. Before that, however, Delphine was decapitated by voodoo priestess Marie Laveau. Bates' next American Horror Story appearance came in the season 4, Freak Show. She played Ethel Darling, the bearded woman atFrulein Elsa's Cabinet of Curiosities. Ethel also suffered severe injuries to her head after a knife was thrown into her eye by Elsa Mars. To cover upEthel's death, Elsa cut off her head and made it look like she was decapitated in a car accident.

Next, Bates portrayed Iris, the manager of the Hotel Cortez, in season 5. Upon losing her son, Iris attempted suicide, and when overdosing didn't work, a fellow ghost assisted by suffocating her with a plastic bag. Iris was then revived by her son with the dangerous blood virus. In Roanoke, Bates playedAgnes Mary Winstead, the woman who portrayedThomasin White (aka "The Butcher") in the in-universe documentary,My Roanoke Nightmare. Not only was Thomasin's throat slit in the series, but Agnes fell victim to the real version of her character when the ghost of The Butcher swung a cleaver into her head.

Bates reprised her Coven role in Apocalypse, but she also introduced a new American Horror Story character through her portrayal ofMiriam Mead. As a human, Miriam was burned at the stake by the coven, but after being resurrected in the form of an android, Cordelia killed her a second time. When she was destroyed, her robotic head fell off. Of course, Bates' Apocalypse deaths were erased after the time travel retconned the series of events.

Next:What American Horror Story's Spin-Off Needs To Learn From Black Mirror

Aang Is The Villain Of The Cabbage Mans Story In Last Airbender Alt Intro

Kara Hedash is a features writer for Screen Rant. From time to time, she dives into the world's most popular franchises but Kara primarily focuses on evergreen topics. The fact that she gets to write about The Office regularly is like a dream come true. Before joining Screen Rant, Kara served as a contributor for Movie Pilot and had work published on The Mary Sue and Reel Honey. After graduating college, writing began as a part-time hobby for Kara but it quickly turned into a career. She loves binging a new series and watching movies ranging from Hollywood blockbusters to hidden indie gems. She also has a soft spot for horror ever since she started watching it at too young of an age. Her favorite Avenger is Thor and her favorite Disney princess is Leia Organa. When Kara's not busy writing, you can find her doing yoga or hanging out with Gritty. Kara can be found on Twitter @thekaraverse.

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American Horror Story: Every Way Kathy Bates Has Died (& How They're Linked) - Screen Rant

In 1971, Satyajit Ray took his turn in defining what he means by a star. A star is a person on the screen who continues to be expressive and interesting even after he or she has stopped doing anything. This was as fair and ingenious a definition as any. But how long is that even after, one might want to ask. This is because the star in question is none other than Uttam Kumar, for whom that even after is a full forty years; for, not only has he stopped working, he has in fact been gone for exactly four decades to the day. And forty years in this precipitous planet and in the perfidious world of cinema is enough even for a star as titanic as Uttam to have atrophied into a historical artefact, or an academic curiosity, or a mummified cultural trophy.

But Uttams afterlife has been extraordinary. Part of it is because of learned commemoration: there are countless memoirs, nostalgic ruminations, visual revisits and cinematic histories. There are reams of felicitous homage from colleagues and co-actors, directors, technicians, distributors, theatre-owners and other luminaries from all walks of life, which has created a riveting tableau of lives Uttam had directly been able to touch, if not also transform. Part of it is because of the readiness of a gregarious culture ever ready to collapse into the past. Bring a few talkative Bengalis together and in no time at all they will be in an immersive adda about Uttam and his films; humming a song or two, replaying a scene here and there, momentarily lost in the redolence of those monochrome hours, in the imagined greatness of a golden period.

For every bit of this purportedly bhadrolok acts of retention, there are also spontaneous, streetwise displays of exuberant adoration. Land in Calcutta and you would see broadsheets, hoardings, shops, posters, books dangling with his face. In quickly disappearing atriums of single-screen theatres across the city, he is ubiquitous. Uttams smiling portrait also peeps out from sudden nooks and corners neighbourly salons, dusty tailor-shops, bare-boned photo-studios, rusty sweetshops and grimy eateries that are either in thrall of his everlasting charm or touting the honour of his visit into their midst many moons ago. The scale of Uttams easy visibility across Calcutta and towns of Bengal four decades since his death makes one singular claim: that Uttam has not only refused mortality but has made a permanent home in the collective memory of Bengal.

Uttams appeal was built not only on an edifice of feel-good, gratifying romances but on the ability of his screen persona to conform and contradict; to understand the melancholic heft of the period while also being able to navigate it gently, with dulcet humility; and without rebellion and rancour.

This is about the stardom bit. What about the performances? There are many indices. First, the institutions inaugural national award for best acting in 1967; six BFJA Awards, numerous felicitations and other displays of collective reverence from public organisations. Second, metaphorical a film by Satyajit Ray at the peak of his powers (Nayak, 1966) that was based on Uttams life and had Uttam as the protagonist. Ray has never eschewed his admiration for Uttam, calling him an unparalleled cinematic icon. Consider the following brief passage from Pico Iyers New York Review of Books essay on The Hero, which accompanied the Criterion Collection release of the film in 2018. Iyer writes, The film is anchored at every moment in Kumars performance, and to me its an astonishment[...] The beauty of Kumars Arindam Mukherjee is that he has the capacity to surprise us, again and again. He can be witty and charming and kind. As Ray and Kumar push beneath the leading mans smooth surfaces, we expect, perhaps, demons and sleepless nights; but we may not be prepared for such grace.

There is also a possible third index. Note that some of Hindi cinemas milestones: Saheb Bibi Gulam (Saheb Bibi Golam), Hum Hindustani (Bosu Poribar), Hum Dono (Uttarayan), Kala Pani (Sobar Opore), Lal Pathhar (Lal Pathor), Angoor (Bhrantibilash), Jibanmrityu (Jibon Mrityu), Chupke Chupke (Chhadmabeshi), Amar Prem (Nishipodmo), Kati Patang (Surjotopa), Anurodh (Deya Neya), Abhiman (Bilombito Loy), Bemisal (Ami She o Sokha) and Ijaazat (Jotugriha) were all remakes of Uttams films. This is to say that nine of Hindi cinemas big names Guru Dutt, Sunil Dutt, Dev Anand, Rajkumar, Sanjeev Kumar, Rajesh Khanna, Dharmendra, Amitabh Bachchan and even Naseeruddin Shah have together brought to the screen multitudinous leading characters which in their original belonged to just one actor. This might give a hint of the range and depth of Uttams original talent.

And this is not counting his stellar performances in never-remade films: Bicharak (The Judge, 1959), Shiulibari (The Townmaker, 1961), Kanna (The Cry, 1962), Sesh Onko (The Last Act, 1963) Kal Tumi Aleya (The Negotiator, 1966), Chiriakhana (The Zoo, 1967), Antony Firingee (Poet from a Foreign Land, 1967) Chowringhee (Chowronghee, 1968), Ekhane Pinjor (The Prisonhouse, 1971), Agniswar (Lord of Fire, 1975) and Baghbandi Khela (The Hunting Game, 1975) among others. This example might also give a hint as to why one kind of performative stardom travels poorly across terrains but forms a larger-than-life incarnation in their home soil: Toshiro Mifune, Alain Delon, Innokenty Smoktunovsky, Tony Leung Chiu-wai and yes, the hearth-throb Marcello Mastroianni are some other robust examples.

It is somewhat epiphanic that the quadragennial month of Uttams death falls bang in the middle of a globe-rummaging pandemic. And that gives me a final reason to reflect on why Uttams screen persona is worth revisiting. As he rose in public reckoning in the mid-1950s, Uttams stardom emerged as the key figure around which the architectonics of Bengali popular cinema announced its re-organisation. The changed circumstances of Bengals chequered years could, in the young mans ordinariness, trace the hapless new citizen, the displaced refugee, the troubling aspirations of an artiste or the youth hopelessly in love. This was the initial capital of Uttam Kumars fledgling stardom and he built unfailingly upon its wide appeal. Much of the magnetism of his 1950s melodramas hence lay in this incorporation of a self-assured, footloose, companionable figure. In fact, it was this everyman figuration which in besieged, beleaguered Bengal explored resolutions to a series of crises that could interchange what was desirable and what could be realisable. In other words, Uttams appeal was built not only on an edifice of feel-good, gratifying romances but on the ability of his screen persona to conform and contradict; to understand the melancholic heft of the period while also being able to navigate it gently, with dulcet humility; and without rebellion and rancour.

Surely, there is a lesson or two to learn from that persona as it saunters into another era forty years after his mortal frame had turned into dust.

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Uttam Kumar and intimations of immortality - The Hindu

By Richard B.Spence, Ph.D., University of Idaho

There was much secrecy in the ancient world and almost all the written documents concerning the mystery cults were lost. All that is left are pieces of information around which the ancient civilizations have been reconstructed. Much of the popular perception of ancient Greek and Roman civilizations has come from Hollywood and not from any scholarly findings or writings. But it has become quite clear that the mysteries were entirely different from the actual civic life of Greece.

In ancient Greece, people were officially expected to worship the emperor. But that was not the case with mystery cults. They offered fellowship and mystical experience that was personal to everyone. They even went to the extent of making people have direct contact with the divine. Redemption, salvation, and immortality were what mystery cults sought.

The Greeks found that mystery cults had roots in Egypt and had originated there. However, this has not been established although there may be some truth in it. Modern researchers have associated mystery cults with the likes of the sinister brotherhood which was introduced and expanded by Babylonian King Nimrod or even an Indo-European proto religion. But no one has been able to prove their origins with any kind of evidence. As per William Cooper, the late American conspiracy theorist, mystery cults originated in a primitive secret society named the Dragon society or Brotherhood of the snake. But again, there is nothing to prove that.

This is a transcript from the video series The Real History of Secret Societies. Watch it now, on The Great Courses Plus.

However, these mystery cults did have some common features. Each one of them had a connection with seasonal movements like those of stars and planets and progressions like equinoxes and solstices. All of them practiced initiation ceremonies, which were tough and long most of the time. Initiation here means taking in, and the ceremonies meant taking someone into a select community. Furthermore, all communities took vows of secrecy which bound them together and protected them. These bonds between the communities were strengthened by individual group rituals, meals, dancing together, andsometimesby an orgy. There was a central myth or story to these mystery cults which invariably involved subjects of death and resurrection. It was part of the mystery as to whether this myth or story was to be taken precisely or symbolically. Some of these elements can be found, for example, in medieval passion plays. Much depended on the individual experience, but the ultimate goal was an individuals spiritual awakening and unification with god.

Although mystery cults observed a lot of secrecy, some things are known. There used to be an internal hierarchy in these mysteries. The top-most person was hierophant or apostle, who was the revealer of holy things. Ordinary people who were initiated were called mystes. One of the rituals for initiation was taking sacred objects from a chest and putting them into a basket. Although this action seems foolish, its significance lay in what it symbolized. The uninitiated do not understand. The last revelation was simple but perplexing. It involved reaping an ear of grain in silence. This was ridiculed by Christian writers and called a proof of the foolishness of the cult. They wondered why one should go through all this just for an ear of grain. But it meant a lot in the context of initiation.

As initiating a person in multiple mysteries was a common practice, cults had an inevitable influencing effect on each other, in the same way as a person belonging to the Elks, the Masons, and the Odd Fellows. For example, Eleusinian mysteries had a lot of similarities with the more mystical Samothracian cult. This cult, based on the small island of Aegean in Samothrace, revered what they called the great gods, with their names known only to the initiated. The center was held by a Demeter-like great mother, who was attended by two junior male deities. Rituals were held both outdoors and indoors with sacred objects in place. One of the premises is that Samothracian mysteries disguised a cult which was devoted to the strange goddess Hecate. Apart from other things, she practiced witchcraft and European witches would revere her as their deity. In the Shakespeare play Macbeth, Hecate who was invoked by the three sisters at the beginning of the play.

Learn more about the secret societies behind the Boston Tea Party and Bastille Day.

In the study of geometry or trigonometry, the Pythagoras theorem is well known. However, Pythagoras also founded a secret society that was based on reincarnation, vegetarianism, the immortality of the soul, and, of course, mathematics. Around 500 B.C., the Pythagorean Brotherhood came up in southern Italy. Although called a brotherhood, sometimes it initiated women too. The first three centuries of the A.D. era was the period when mystery cults bloomed most. And this was also the period when the Roman empire had its heydays. But this was no coincidence. As Rome brought most of the Mediterranean and Near East under its control, it acted as a melting pot for different religions, people, and ideas. And one of the mystery cults which was most popular in Rome was devoted to the Egyptian goddess Isis.

Like other secret societies, mystery cults were not equal. Some were preferred by the poor and downtrodden while others by the rich and affluent. But it can be concluded that mystery cults were not crazy societies who just indulged in wild sex and lust for blood. They also handled the mysteries of life and death in some way, and they provided fellowship and exclusivity. And, to top it all, how the brotherhood and sisterhood kept their vows of secrecy is truly amazing.

Learn more about the Knights Templar.

The Greeks found that mystery cults had roots in Egypt and had originated there. However, this has not been established, although there may be some truth in it. Modern researchers have associated mystery cults with the likes of the sinister brotherhood which was introduced and expanded by Babylonian King Nimrod or even an Indo-European proto religion.

Each one of them had a connection with seasonal movements like those of stars and planets and progressions like equinoxes and solstices. All of them practiced initiation ceremonies. And, above all, all communities took vows of secrecy which bound them together and protected them.

Pythagoras founded a secret society that was based on reincarnation, vegetarianism, the immortality of the soul, and, of course, mathematics. Around 500 B.C., the Pythagorean Brotherhood came up in southern Italy.

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Mystery Cults of Secret SocietiesThe Inside Story - The Great Courses Daily News

The upcoming Star Wars book Dark Legends will reveal the ancient secrets of Exegol - and the mystery of the Sith's quest for immortality.

George Mann's upcomingStar Wars tie-in book,Dark Legends, will reveal ancient secrets of Exegol and the Sith quest for immortality. According to Matt Stover's novelization ofStar Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith, the ultimate goal of every Sith is to find a way to conquer death. As powerful as a Sith may be, though, they can never truly become a Force Ghost in the manner seen by Jedi such as Qui-Gon Jinn and Luke Skywalker, because that involves submitting yourself to the will of the Force - the very opposite of Sith philosophy.

The Sith may not technically be able to conquer death, but they can still come pretty close, as revealed inStar Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. There, the Emperor mysteriously returned from the dead. The film itself was silent as to just how this was possible, but tie-ins have gradually fleshed it out. It seems the Emperor's spirit survivedReturn of the Jedi, and fled to a clone body secreted on the Sith bastion of Exegol. This is a technique known as Essence Transfer, and the experience appears to have made Palpatine even more powerful in the dark side of the Force. There are still a lot of unanswered questions about Essence Transfer, not least the fact a Sith spirit has previously been unable to travel cosmic distances before finding a host. But it seems some of those secrets may well be revealed in George Mann's upcomingStar Wars book,Dark Legends.

Related:Star Wars: All 30 Light & Dark Side Force Powers In Canon

Mann participated in the annual Lucasfilm Publishing Panel at this year's San Diego Comic-Con@Home, and there he talked a little about the book. It's essentially a sequel to his previous work,Myths & Fables, and serves as a collection of in-universe legends. Like real-world myths, many of these have an element of truth to them, and apparently one of the tales inDark Legends will explore the Sith quest for immortality. As Mann explained:

"Another example is a story set on Exegol, which was great fun to do, because I was writing that just in the runup to the film coming out, and being able to hear a few of the little secrets about what was going to happen. And we're exploring in that, that kind of whole thing that the Emperor was trying to do, that whole Sith quest for immortality and this is an ancient story about a Sith who's tried before to win immortality, and the price of that - the price of immortal life, and what it does to a person who can achieve it, or get close to it. Like most of these kind of Grimm's Fairy Tales, you have a sting in the tail of most of these stories, so no one gets what they quite expect by the end of the tale."

This ancient Sith's quest for immortality appears to have been successful enough to make their way into Sith legend, so they can safely be called a forerunner of Palpatine himself. But Mann suggests things didn't turn out well; he's fashioned these stories on Grimm's Fairy Tales, meaning people don't always get what they want. Presumably that means there will be a major cost to the Sith quest, with Palpatine learning lessons from the legend but choosing not to duplicate it.The history of the Sith planet Exegol is currently shrouded in mystery. According to the junior novelization ofStar Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, it was a once-fertile habitat that was despoiled by the Sith, who consumed the world's resources. Hidden in the depths of the Unknown Regions, it was presumably found by Sith explorers who used the Force to safely chart a path through the maelstrom. They recognized its potential as a major stronghold, although there may well have been others as well; thus when the Sith Empire was defeated millennia ago, the survivors took Exegol as their base.

Star Wars: Dark Legends will be available at your local book store on July 28th, 2020.

More:Star Wars Confirms The First Jedi DIDNT Serve The Light Side

X-Men: Cyclops' Brother is Back, With a HUGE Secret

Tom Bacon is one of Screen Rant's staff writers, and he's frankly amused that his childhood is back - and this time it's cool. Tom's focus tends to be on the various superhero franchises, as well as Star Wars, Doctor Who, and Star Trek; he's also an avid comic book reader. Over the years, Tom has built a strong relationship with aspects of the various fan communities, and is a Moderator on some of Facebook's largest MCU and X-Men groups. Previously, he's written entertainment news and articles for Movie Pilot.A graduate of Edge Hill University in the United Kingdom, Tom is still strongly connected with his alma mater; in fact, in his spare time he's a voluntary chaplain there. He's heavily involved with his local church, and anyone who checks him out on Twitter will quickly learn that he's interested in British politics as well.

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Star Wars: Dark Legends Will Reveal Secrets of Sith Immortality - Screen Rant

Though Netflix has yet to confirm a sequel to The Old Guard starring Charlize Theron, some big questions surrounding the mythology remain unanswered.

Netflixs new action-drama The Old Guard leaves some big questions unanswered, likely because of plans to expand the story into a trilogy of movies. The Old Guard follows Andy (Charlize Theron), the leader of a team of immortal warriors whose self-assigned mission it is to fight on the right side of history. The team includes Booker (Matthias Schoenaerts), Joe (Marwan Kenzari) and Nicky (Luca Marinelli), soon to be joined by a new Immortal, U.S. Marine Nile Freeman (KiKi Layne). Things grow more complicated when the teams secret is uncovered by former CIA agent Copley (Chiwetel Ejiofor), who hands evidence of their immortality over to pharmaceutical company CEO Merrick (Harry Melling). Merrick wants the Immortals captured so he can discover the secret to immortality and the end of disease for all.

Based on Greg Ruckas original comic series of the same name (Rucka also served as writer on the production), The Old Guard proved a refreshing take on the superhero genre, treating the characters abilities as both a gift and a great burden. Though Netflix has yet to announce a sequel, the movies ambiguous ending does effectively set up a potential sequel. Indeed, director Gina Prince-Bythewood confirmed in an interview with Digital Spy that The Old Guard was planned as the start of a trilogy, explaining that Rucka always envisioned this as a trilogy. I know where the story goes, and its pretty great. So if the audience is eager for it, theres definitely more stories to tell. It therefore makes sense for The Old Guard to leave some of its biggest questions unanswered as a way of tickling audience curiosity and encouraging demand for a sequel.

Related:The Old Guard Cast Guide: Where You've Seen Each Actor Before

With this in mind, there are some major questions left unanswered, and not just the ones set up by The Old Guards final scenes. Rucka explained that he wanted to make it really clear that the first story is not concerned with the how or the why of their immortality, likely to keep the story action-driven and avoid being weighed down by too much exposition. His statement also indicates an intention to explore the mythology further should a sequel be green-lit. Below are some of the biggest questions from The Old Guard that fans want answered.

One of the biggest questions posed by the Netflix movie is how the team became immortal in the first place. It is something the heroes ponder themselves, and the audience receives no answers. Does immortality manifest randomly? Is it the result of some genetic mutation akin to that of the X-Men? Some divine gift bestowed on a select few? What is certain is that none of the characters seem to hold the answers, but perhaps more will be revealed in future.

Andys age becomes something of a recurring joke throughout the film. Nile asks her about it repeatedly, but Andy maintains that she does not remember how long she has been immortal. While this could be true and she has in fact forgotten her early years, it is just as likely that Andy prefers to keep that part of her life private. What The Old Guard does reveal is that Andy predates the other warriors by many centuries. She spent time being worshipped as a goddess, and it is suggested that Andy was once known as the Queen of the Amazons, Andromache, and battled Heracles. Safe to say she has been around for an exceptionally long time, though it would be interesting to know exactly how long and to uncover more of her history.

The Old Guard established that though long-lasting, immortality is not permanent. No one knows when or why Immortals become mortals again, but the warriors do know their fate is unavoidable. Around halfway through the movie, Andy realizes that she is not healing from a stab wound she suffered, indicating she is now mortal. When she is later captured, her sudden loss of immortality puzzles Copley and Merrick, and the audience is equally left without an explanation. It is possible that, much like the comics, the movies will not delve into the how of immortality but rather focus on the impact it has on the characters. A sequel would therefore see Andy reckon with her newfound mortality without attempting to explain it.

Related:Every Song In Netflix's The Old Guard Movie

Is there a chance that Andy might regain her immortality? Her friend and fellow Immortal Lykon, thus far the only Immortal to lose his ability, died in combat. It therefore remains possible that immortality could return just as it went away, or that there is a way for it to be regained. Even if Andy herself is content to die, perhaps her team members are not ready to lose their fearless leader and friend and will seek to restore her abilities.

Quynh (Veronica Ngo) was Andys partner and friend for hundreds of years until they were both captured during the European witch hunts. After failing to die from hanging, a group of priests decide to separate the two women and trap Quynh in an iron maiden, sending her to the bottom of the sea where she could never be found. In the movies most haunting scene, viewers witness Quynh being forced to drown, die and be reborn over and over for five centuries. She was trapped in her metal coffin for hundreds of years yet, by the movies end, it is revealed that Quynh has finally escaped. How? Viewers will have to wait for a sequel to find out.

The two never met, but it is likely that Quynh also had visions of new Immortals, much like Andy and the team had when Nile first died. She approaches Booker only a few months after he is exiled from the immortal group for his betrayal, and he finds her waiting for him in his apartment. What does Quynh want with him? It is likely she approached him as a way of getting to Andy; whether she wants to reconnect with her old companion or seek revenge is unclear, though the latter seems more probable given the suffering she endured.

Later in the movie, Copley reveals that the Old Guard has saved hundreds of people throughout history, many of whom would go on to save humanity in some way, be it by preventing a nuclear catastrophe or by making some life-altering scientific discovery. Is it just coincidence? Does the team save so many people that, merely through the laws of probability, some were bound to go on to play crucial parts in directing human history? Or could it be that some higher power is controlling their actions, pointing them in the right direction like pawns on a chessboard?

Could there be other Immortals in the world that the Old Guard are unaware of? Or people much like Nile, lying dormant and ignorant of their immortality, until the time of their first death? It is doubtful that throughout the entirety of human history, only seven Immortals have existed. Perhaps a sequel to The Old Guard would see the team confronted with others like them.

Next:The Old Guard Ending & Sequel Setup Explained

X-Mens Olivia Munn Wields Psylockes Sword To Disastrous Results In New Video

Laura is a news and features writer at Screen Rant, having written on film, television and culture for a number of print and online publications since 2016. She most enjoys speaking to actors and filmmakers about their projects, having interviewed the likes of Sir Patrick Stewart, Robert De Niro, and Melissa McCarthy. Otherwise, she can usually be found re-watching the same five sci-fiction/fantasy shows for the umpteenth time, at a film festival or laughing at X A-12 memes. Follow her @laura_potier to discuss whether Legally Blonde or Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping most deserves to be crowned the best film in cinematic history. Citizen Kane who?

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The Old Guard: Biggest Unanswered Questions From The Netflix Movie - Screen Rant

I get no great pleasure from seeing my old beach patrol on LBI make national news at least not for the reasons now.

I have been a lifeguard for 35 years, and have made a career as afull-time year-roundaquatic safety, rescue and training professional.For much of it, I haveadvocated that lifeguards are good at their jobs not in spite of theiryouth, energy, gregarious nature and feelings of immortality, butbecause of them. These are the qualities that make lifeguards available for seasonal employment, practiced at long hours of concentration, capable of bursts of athleticism, confident at making rescues, proficient at working as a team, gifted at making connections, and adored by young people, many of whom see excitement or glory in the job and aspire to the position one day.

That said, lifeguarding is often a teens or young adults first job, and the curve for learning not just lifesaving skills, but also employment skills can be steep. While they navigate this position that includes elements of medicine, sport, liability, public relations, administration and more, they have, on occasion, been known to make some poor choices.

Case in point: gathering en masse during a pandemic, which has resulted in a bloom of COVID-19 cases among lifeguards on LBI and elsewhere.

At best, the lifeguards actions have a ripple effect (pun intended) that negatively impacts the Islands economy, as the outbreak has forced work stoppages in restaurants, retail shops and clubs that employ those lifeguards family and friends.Many of those establishments took great precautions to avoid this and, through no fault of their own or their employees, are suffering.At worst, those lifeguards compromisedpublic health and safety, resulting from understaffed beaches, not to mention the spread of a mysterious mutating disease.

So its tempting to trash lifeguards as immature and irresponsible,and make them the villainsin this episode.After all, many of them failed in their primary objective to protect human life at the beach.We count on them to be there, and they risked that.But for lifeguardsto be successful, in lifesaving and beyond, they need guidance and support and examples from a variety of sources: parents, supervisors, colleagues and the public they serve.If the goal is to prevent drowning, the second leading cause of accidental death among children and young adults, we need lifeguards to be successful.We need lifeguards, period.

Since the positive performance of lifeguards is important to all of us for public safety, property values, tourism and more heres how you (yes, YOU!), no matter what your relationship to a lifeguard, can help ensure their professional triumph.

They Are Not Kids. We hear it all the time.How many kids do you have working thissummer?The answer: none.That lifeguard in the chair may be your child, but he or she is not a child.Would you trust a kid with your most precious commodity your life and that of your child or children in an inherently dangerous environment like the ocean?Change your language.Use young professional.Or simply lifeguard. If you call them kids, you will invite kid behavior.And you will be tempted to forgive the errors in judgment that are part of gaining experience rather than holding them accountable and helping them learn from their mistakes.

Attending a group gathering during a pandemic is one such lapse.If any parents or supervisors facilitated, condoned or ignored this, they are complicit in this outbreak.

Work and Home. The expectations oflifeguards are the same as members of a family, and the lessons gained through employment underscore those taught at home. Do your fair share.Pick up yourown stuff.Be ready when its time to go.Call if youre going to be late.While the lifeguard is responsible for his or her own employment conduct and communication, support for the job at home starts with parents involving their lifeguard in their family schedule and knowing how far in advance they need to request days off.It includes expectations of readiness, so details for transportation and lunch can be coordinated.It followsthrough job performance, with discussions about how sleep, hydration, alcohol and events that pose potential virus exposure positively and negatively affect a lifeguards ability to fulfill their duties.

Not Your Daddys Beach Patrol.Or your moms.Lifeguarding traditions are passed through generations,in families and in agencies.While today more than 60 percent of U.S. lifeguards are women, allare following in a historically male-dominated institution.Some patrols are deeply rooted in a bravado-fueled value system where binge drinking and licentious behavior are still exalted rites of passage.Working through a hangover is not a reason to brag; its a reason to stay home without pay.If youre a lifeguard trying to live up to the old lore, or a supervisor or parent trying to recapture or pass on that experience, stop.Perpetuating a drunken hook-up culture is physically, emotionally and financially dangerous.

Many things in lifeguarding have changed: the science, the equipment, the role of women, the risks of intimaterelations and, oh yeah, the virus.

Overcoming Public Perception.The zealous unity among lifeguards, especially seasonal ones, comes from having to be their own cheerleaders.Many lifeguards feel (or are) degraded compared to their brothers and sisters in police, fire and EMS thatgetbetter pay,more benefitsandgreater respect.But by the time someone calls 911, the crisis has already occurred.Lifeguards are the onlyemergency medical responders charged with drowning prevention andrecognition.They have to vigilantly watch, firmly and politely warn, keenly recognize even the subtlestsigns of distress, and intervene before a situation worsens withtheir bodies, not shiny vehicles with lights and sirens.Lifeguarding is not the bottom of the EMS hierarchy.It is aspecialty.Behaving badly compromises credibility.

Lifeguards for Life. The U.S. Lifesaving Association slogan suggests membership in an elite club of people with a shared experience in water rescue not just for the duration of your life, butin all aspectsof your life.That means that as a lifeguard, you bring honor to the profession as an example of skill and safety in everything you do.You are clean, polished, professional, attentive and sober on and off the job.Your behavior withstands public scrutiny, and your social media profiles do not undermine the reputation of a person tasked with the serious responsibility of protecting human life. And dont even get me started on the number of lifeguards I see riding to work on their bicycles without a helmet, buoy can in one hand and phone in the other.No lifeguardshould consider himself or herself an exception to the rule; they must be examples of it.

We Cant Control What They Do Off Duty.Nope, we cant. But performance at work is influenced by off-duty activities. Want to curtail drinking on Saturday night? Schedule mandatory in-services early Sunday morning. Want to limit large gatherings? Establish group size limits in your daily operations. Leaders need to set a strong workplace example in this health crisis. Arrange stands 6 feet apart. Schedule lifeguards in staggered shifts, and with the same partner(s) all season. Conduct training in pods to minimize large-group interaction. Require masks for daily meetings, and hold them outdoors or on Zoom. Demonstrate pandemic awareness in every aspect of your operation. Then you can establish consequences for activities both on and off the job that risk the health of your staff and patrons and the smooth running of your team, as the NFL just did.

Manyof us cringed and held our breath as we watched lifeguards conduct themselves as usual.But this summer is anything but usual.And agencies were vulnerable to the characteristics of lifeguards that occasionally hurt their performance as well as often help it.The lifeguards recent social interaction has caused interruptions in even the most proactive of patrols.That just means we need to keep at it.Do your contact tracing.Dont knowingly put lifeguards on the pineif someone in your crew tests positive.If the spread among lifeguards reveals cracks in your prevention strategy, fill them in now,like a sand hole thats ready to collapse.

Show them how theyve hurtthemselves,and not just their reputations.Was that one party worth two weeks of lost wages and 14 days in quarantine?Did the missed work time cost them eligibility for an award or consideration for a promotion? They say they love their big family-like crew?Well then, when you dismiss half your beach patrol to get a COVID test during work hours, make them acknowledge the brothers and sisters they left on the wood.And while youre at it, publicly thank the lifeguards who did not have to be excused for three hours on a work day.A little recognition for making the responsible choice only to end up taking on the extra coverage never hurts.

Is this on them? Absolutely. The lifeguards are the responsible parties. They disregarded public health warnings, state mandates and likely the advice of their parents and the rules of their agency. At this age, they think theyre unbreakable. Most people, young and old, wont believe something until they experience it for themselves. Many of the lifeguards affected (and infected) are still on the road to adulting. Theyve not had enough life experience to know what we know firsthand. Our job as seasoned adults who have been there and done that is to recognize and show them their victories and their vulnerabilities, and to help them understand that their actions have consequences to themselves and others whom they know, and dont.

Only then can they climb back from this mistake, and back up on that chair.

Stephane Rebeck is a resident of Barnegat Light and St. Louis, Mo.She is a USLA surf rescue training officer and the chief of BYLG Sport Water Rescue.In 2018, she was named the National Drowning Prevention Alliance Lifesaver of the Year.

Excerpt from:

How We Help Our Lifeguards Do Better on and Off the Job - The SandPaper

Some teams have resorted to utilizing cardboard cutouts of fans. Expect an army of Teddy bears, mannequins and mask-clad puppets marching up the outfield ramp soon.

The stands look like those of a last-place team in September.

With no fans in the seats at major league baseball games, home run balls just clang around in the empty seats before disappearing underneath one. Actually, it looks like giant a pinball machine out there with no one commanding the flippers.

"Tommy can you hear me?"

What a lonely baseball.

The late Detroit Tigers Hall of Fame play-by-play radio announcer Ernie Harwell used to proclaim, "A man from Kalamazoo caught that one," after a foul ball lofted into the jam-packed stands. And it sounded believable to young listeners, whom scratched their heads and wondered, "How did he know that?"

Some teams have resorted to utilizing cardboard cutouts of fans in a stark attempt to create ballpark spirit while missing the aroma of hot dogs, peanuts and liquid libations aiding their cause. Expect an army of Teddy bears, mannequins and mask-clad puppets marching up the outfield ramp real soon.

Maybe franchises could glue gloves onto those cutouts. If the ball bounces or pops in, it belongs to the lucky fan who bank-rolled the knock-off.

Companies might consider purchasing corporate sponsorship boxes and send 20 fortunate employee cutouts clad with its company logo to the game.

How about some famous fans cutouts like Bill Murray, Drew Carey, Tom Selleck and Jerry Seinfeld? Or Eminen and some rock groups to liven up luxury boxes? An Erin Andrews cutout with piped in audio could ask them some baseball trivia during a pitching change.

We need something, because when a historic blast happens, someone or something needs to field it. The fans snag and story is just as intrinsic to the event as well.

Los Angeles Angels first baseman Albert Pujols is just four home runs shy of catching Willie Mays with 660 and moving into fifth place on the all-time home run list. Barring injury or some COVID-crud, this is going down real soon.

So whos gonna catch it unless it leaves the park?

When Babe Ruth entered immortality with his 700th career blast at Navin Field in Detroit, at least 17-year-old Lenny Bielski ran it down and dove underneath a parked car to claim it. According to a 1973 Detroit Free Press interview, Bielski reminisced about the mob which immediately pursued.

"Then a lot of policemen and ushers all grabbed me. They put me on their shoulders and stopped the game and took me into the ballpark and put me in the dugout with Babe Ruth, Joe McCarthy the manager and Lou Gehrig. After the game Babe said, Im gonna give him $120. He didnt have his wallet, though, so he told Gehrig, Ill give that boy a $20 bill,'" said Bielski in the interview.

Did that moment and not-so-lonely ball mean something to him and Ruth? Well, he never spent the $20 even though it was during hub of the Great Depression.

Tigers first baseman Miguel Cabrera just passed Adrian Beltre with a home run Saturday and is 22 round-trippers shy of the exclusive 500 club. He may not have a legitimate shot at 22 on a 60-game schedule, but he needs just 15 more to catch Gehrig and Fred McGriff -- tied for 28th place on the all-time list with 493. Historically, Cabrera bashes one every 18.76 at-bats.

If Miggy hits it, someone has to fetch it, and Bielski doesnt live in the neighborhood anymore.

Maybe they could put a corporate-sponsored cardboard cutout of the Beatles out there dressed in Dr. Peppers Lonely Balls Club fans attire to get a glove on it.

Bill Kemp can be reached at Bill.Kemp@theledger.com; follow him on Twitter @BillKempSports

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Bill Kemp: Forget Whos on first, whos gonna catch it? - The Ledger

Its no stretch to say that a great deal of Tuukka Rasks ultimate legacy with the Bruins is tied up in the unprecedented 2020 Stanley Cup playoffs inside the bubble.

Sure, the 33-year-old is a Vezina Trophy finalist this season for the second time in his NHL career and is essentially in a two-man race with Winnipegs Connor Hellebuyck for the ultimate piece of goaltending hardware this season. The .929 save percentage and NHL-leading 2.25 goals against average speak for themselves about his dominance this year while largely splitting time with backup goalie Jaroslav Halak in a nearly equal split of playing time.

Truthfully, the regular season accolades go on and on for Rask as he continues to prove hes the best regular season goaltender in Bruins franchise history. Hes the all-time winningest goalie in Bruins history with 291 wins, and has the most games played (536), the most saves (13,711) and the best save percentage (.922) in the Bs nearly 100-year franchise history.

Get the latest news and analysis on all of your teams from NBC Sports Bostonby downloading the My Teams App

Even his playoff stats are excellent as Rask ranks seventh all-time in NHL history with a .9268 save percentage in the postseason and is the active leader among all NHL goalies with a .9218 career save percentage in the regular season over his 13-year career.

He ranks third all-time in career save percentage behindDominik Hasek and Johnny Bower, both Hall of Famers. Clearly, the reduced workload paired with Jaroslav Halak has been a big deal to Rask in the last couple of seasons as hes approaching his mid-thirties. The reduced workload led directly to playing at a Vezina Trophy level all season and allowed Rask to carry the Bruins with a .934 save percentage during last springs run to the Stanley Cup Final.

Rask is even beginning to push his way into the Hockey Hall of Fame conversation as the career numbers pile up for him.

But there is an unfinished business element to his decade-long legacy with the Black and Gold after falling short in some extremely big moments for the Bruins during the postseason.

You look at as a process and when youre a young guy, youre just looking to make a name for yourself, said Rask. And then as the years go by you kind of learn different things about your game and about yourself, and what you need to do and what not [to do].

In the years where I needed to play a lot of games I had to focus on keeping my mind sharp and my body rested, and years where I didnt have to play a lot of games then you have more practice time. I think over the years its a balance of keeping your mind and body in sync. And you try to improve your game every day and every year and then before you know it ten years have gone by. You say wow and its been a long time when it doesnt feel like its been that long.

Rask has won a Stanley Cup as a backup to Tim Thomas in 2011, but the Finnish netminder has not been able to carry the Bruins to hockey immortality as the franchise guy. He has yet to get the Bs over the top in two tries at the Stanley Cup Final in 2013 and 2019 and the Bruins enter this postseason as the favorites after winning the Presidents'Trophy during the regular season.

If you look at the way our team is built, were built for a long run into the playoffs, said Rask. Unfortunately, we were heading to a direction when the league, and the whole world, came to a stop. Now we have to go back to building that chemistry with the same group as when it stopped. Obviously, winning a Stanley Cup or any trophy in Boston is a big thing.

Thats something we need to try for and thats our goal. We just have to adapt and build that groove and chemistry back up. The way I look at it is that all bets are off because everybody has been off for the last four months and were starting from scratch.

The Bruins' core group isnt getting any younger and neither is Rask as he enters the final year of his contract with Boston next season, so this may be the last, best chance for all of them to win one more before the championship window begins to close.

If Rask once again falls short this postseason, fair or not, it will cement a legacy that he was never able to carry the Bruins over the Cup threshold as Tim Thomas did almost 10 years ago when he pitched shutouts in Game 7 of both the Eastern Conference Final and then again in the Stanley Cup Final against the Vancouver Canucks. If he's not ready to play after the long layoff and the Bruins exit the postseason quickly, it will be even worse for all parties involved.

If Rask is able to play as he did last postseason, when he would have won the Conn Smythe Trophy had the Bs won Game 7 against St. Louis, and finish it off by playing well when the Bruins need him most in a Game 7-type situation, then it will be the crowning achievement in whats already been an exceptional regular season career. It could mean entry to the Hockey Hall of Fame for Rask, and it certainly would clinch his status as the best goalie in the nearly 100-year history of the Bruins franchise.

But all of it comes down to how things go for the goaltender and the Bs hockey club that takes many of its cues from exactly how he is playing between the pipes.

So, yeah, theres quite a bit riding on how things go for Rask in his go-round for the Bruins in the Stanley Cup playoffs.

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Haggerty: Rask's legacy will very much be impacted by this playoff run - NBC Sports Boston

Liverpool sealed immortality in 2019/20, finally winning the Premier League title. But what was each players standout contribution to the season?

Last August, the Reds went into the new campaign as Champions League holders, but the holy grail of a league title had evaded them once more.

What we have witnessed in the 11 months since has been truly remarkable, with 99 points amassed and a worldwide pandemic halting Liverpools title charge for nearly three months.

Jurgen Klopp and his players have gained legendary status forever, with so many individuals coming up with the goods at different times.

Heres what we think was each Liverpool players best moment of 2019/20.

(NB: Excludes those to have made fewer than 10 appearances in all competitions, which rules out the likes of Harvey Elliott, Caoimhin Kelleher and Andy Lonergan.)

Alissons assist against Man United was a standout moment of the entire campaign, as he fired an inch-perfect pass to the onrushing Mohamed Salah.

The Brazilian then raced the full length of the pitch for good measure, producing a world-class knee slide as he celebrated with his team-mate.

Adrian has had an up-and-down first season at Liverpool, but he contributed greatly in the UEFA Super Cup.

The Spaniard saved Tammy Abrahams must-score penalty in the shootout win over Chelsea, sealing yet another trophy for the Reds.

Trent Alexander-Arnolds meteoric rise continued in 2019/20, as he cemented his reputation as one of world footballs most exciting young players.

His performance at Leicester on Boxing Day was arguably the best individual display of the season, with a goal, two assists and a clean sheet to his name.

Neco Williams has come of age this season and he now looks an able deputy to Alexander-Arnold.

The teenager made his Premier League debut against Crystal Palace in Junean immensely proud moment for a huge talent.

Joe Gomez is very much Virgil van Dijks junior partner at the heart of Liverpools defence, but he became the leader in the FA Cup clash with Everton.

He was magnificent in the 1-0 over the Blues, performing immaculately alongside the inexperienced Nat Phillips.

Van Dijk has repeated last seasons brilliance, becoming an ever-present in the Premier League for a second season in a row.

The Dutchmans header at home to United has to be his best moment, although his incredible headed control to himself against Brighton epitomised his class.

Injuries have again disrupted Joel Matips season, but he was in imperious form at the start of the campaign.

The centre-backs bullet header at home to Arsenal in August set Liverpool on their way to a resounding 3-1 victory.

Lovren leaves Anfield this summer and his season was often miss rather than hit.

Thats not to say there havent been key contributions, however, not least in the 3-1 win over Man City at Anfield, when he was a rock at the back.

His brilliant assist against Chelsea comes close, but Andy Robertsons equaliser at Aston Villa in November was a big moment in the season.

Without his header, and the Sadio Mane strike that followed, the title race could so easily have panned out differently on a day when City looked to have narrowed the gap to just four points.

The win over City was a day that highlighted Liverpools superiority over their rivals and Fabinho was a monster in the middle of the park.

The Brazilians stunning strike opened the scoring he would score a similar effort at home to Palace, too.

Theres only one winner here.

Jordan Henderson became the first-ever Liverpool captain to lift the Premier League trophy it is an image that he will be remembered for forever.

That Steven Gerrard-shaped shadow looming over him is no more.

It might not have been pretty, but Gini Wijnaldums winner at Sheffield United was priceless.

The 29-year-olds volley squeezed through the hands of Dean Henderson to send the away end wild, as Liverpool maintained their 100 percent record in gritty fashion.

When it comes to scoring a penalty, would you trust anyone more than James Milner?

The veterans last-gasp spot-kick against Leicester at Anfield was another enormous moment in the title race, as Liverpools relentless march to glory continued.

Naby Keita has been one of Liverpools star men after the restart, having blown hot and cold prior to it.

The Guineans thunderous strike against Chelsea was his best goal yet for the Reds and further suggests he is on the verge of becoming an increasingly key figure.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain chipped in with eight goals in 2019/20, including a beauty against former club Arsenal in the League Cup.

It was his gorgeous outside-of-the-foot finish away to Genk that was the pick of the bunch, though, with the shot hitting the underside of the crossbar for good measure.

Adam Lallana departs Liverpool as a hugely popular figure, with his impact off the pitch valued greatly by Klopp.

His late equaliser away to United was crucial in its own right, however, preserving the Reds unbeaten record at the time.

This is an obvious one, isnt it?

Scoring in the Premier League against Villa was a great moment for Curtis Jones, as was netting the winning penalty in front of the Kop against Arsenal in the League Cup.

But both pale into insignificance compared to bagging a brilliant winner at home to Everton in the FA Cup.

A dream moment for any boyhood Red.

Xherdan Shaqiris influence at Liverpool has steadily dwindled, but he has still chipped in sporadically.

The Swiss slid home a lovely finish against Everton in the league, on a night when he was at his unpredictable, entertaining best.

Takumi Minamino has yet to make a noticeable contribution for Liverpool, so we will go with his outstanding performance for Salzburg at Anfield.

It was one of the best displays by an opposition player in years, including a well-taken volley.

The 2-0 win over United felt like the day the title was clinched and Salahs aforementioned goal was the crowning moment of the match.

He latched onto Alissons long pass in supreme fashion, before finishing well past David De Gea in front of an ecstatic Kop.

The celebration wasnt too shabby, either.

Mane is a strong Player of the Year contender, producing so many major contributions along the way.

It is his stoppage-time winner at Villa that will arguably be remembered as Liverpools biggest goal of the season, however, with the Senegalese steering a header into the far corner.

It may not have been the most ruthless season of Roberto Firminos career, but he still scored the goal that clinched the Club World Cup back in December.

The 28-year-old finishing with aplomb in the 1-0 win over Flamengo, further etching his name into Liverpool folklore.

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From Alissons assist to Origi lobbing Pickford Every Liverpool players best moment of 2019/20 - This Is Anfield

The dismissible

When an event is unexplained, it cant be repeated. Cubas astonishing internationalism, the good news of the pandemic, is talked about (outside Cuba) as if a miracle, without cause. Support grows for the Nobel Prize nomination but the justification for the Henry Reeve Brigade, established in 2005, is left out. The explanation is ideas.

It is urgent according to Eddie Glaude in a new book on James Baldwin. Well, he doesnt exactly say that. But for Baldwin, what kind of human beings we aspire to be is most important and the explanation for Cubas success is precisely that. In Zona Roja, Enrique Ubieta Gmez says Cuban medical workers fighting Ebola in 2014 know about existence: We exist interdependently. Ubieta describes Cuban internationalism as an inescapable ethic. Once youve lived it, you cannot not live it. You know human connection a fact of science and you learn its energy.

Ubietas explanation is existential. Baldwin used similar language. In 1963, he wrote, Perhaps the whole root of our trouble, the human trouble, is that we imprison ourselves to deny the fact of death, which is the only fact we have. Glaude supports Baldwins call to begin again, with the America idea, shedding its old ideas. He might look South. Latin American independistas raised precisely Baldwins question: how to resist the lie at the heart of the [imperialist] nation when it is about love, life and death, that is, everything.

Truth is not enough. If Galileo had just provided truths, he wouldnt have been condemned. Galileo became threatening when he made those truths plausible with a larger picture of cosmic humility, contradicting the establishments comforting identity. One thing we might learn from Galileo, according to astrophysicist Mario Livio in a new book, is that he didnt just observe truths and tell stories about them. His phenomenal capacity for abstraction let him see where those truths led.

Truths are easy when unexplained. Consider Olga Tokarczuks 'Flights'. It gives truth about people traveling everywhere escaping their own lives, and then being safely escorted right back to them. We see people running through airports with flushed red faces, their straw hats and souvenir drums and masks and shell necklaces. All this moving around in a chaotic fashion [to] increase their likelihood of being in the right place at the right time even has meaning. A travel psychologist explains that such chaos appears to call into question the existence of a self understood non-relationally.

It is funny to expect deeper meaning regarding people moving around in a chaotic fashion to increase their likelihood of being in the right place at the right time from a travel psychologist at an airport between flights. We laugh because we do in fact expect that, absurdly.

We get truth from 'Flights' but its dismissible. Annushka, for instance, escapes her unbearable life : to go, sway, walk, run, take flight. She finds happiness when she does not have a single thought in her head, a single care, a single expectation or hope. Shes happy, free of her identity, her life, her responsibilities. But she is also cold, hungry, dirty, alone, tired, and homeless. The image is silly.

In fact, the idea underlying it is silly, namely, that to have no thoughts, you should have no identity, no responsibilities. Its as pervasive as friction, from which Galileo abstracted to get truth about inertia. In fact, to be happy with no expectations or hope, as Annushka is, is not silly. But understanding how that is so requires a phenomenal capacity for abstraction from social expectations.

'Flights' doesnt do that. It responds to an expectation identified by Cuban philosopher and diplomat Raul Roa in 1953 as the worlds gravest crisis. It was indeed the America idea: Human beings imprisoned in discrete selves, defined by action and results. It is not humanist, as claimed, Roa argues, because it omits the fact of death, as Baldwin recognized. There were few dissenters to the man of action during the Renaissance, and Roa saw there would now be none because of US power.

Baldwin tried to escape that power by living outside the US. He struggled with what it had made of him. But American power follows one everywhere.

Emily Dickinson, the greatest poet in the English language, abstracts from expectations 'Flights' dignifies. According to biographer Martha Ackman, Dickinson lived as if busyness and travel is not progress. She never apologized for, nor defended, the priority she gave to silence and solitude. As result, we get truth from her poetry: about what it means to be human. For, she was in fact not detached from a world she never visited physically or had any desire to.

She lived as if isolation and detachment are not synonymous. But to know where this leads, you must abstract from the America idea that equates human worth and utility. Comfortably, though, Dickinson is odd Americas most enigmatic and mysterious poet and her way of life therefore dismissible.

'Lord of all the Dead', like 'Flights', leaves comforting old ideas in place. Javier Cercas tells the story of his great-uncle who fought a useless war for Franko. His memoire does give truth but doesnt explain it, so his story, which for him is just a story, cannot itself explain, and is dismissible.

Achilles in 'The Odyssey' is lord of all the dead because he died young and beautiful, and gained immortality. That his great uncle was politically mistaken, theres no doubt. But was he a human failure? Cercas answer is no. At one level, Cercas rejects the Greeks ideal of beautiful death because it denies the existential reality of decrepitude: There is no escaping it. But on the other hand, Cercas assumes the separation of mind and body that makes beautiful death worth speculating about: the idea that the body decays and that the mind somehow escapes natures universal laws of causation.

He ends the book speculating about immortality. Nobody dies, he writes. Were just transformed, physically. He himself, at the book's end, is in the eternal present. It doesnt explain what needs to be explained, given the real story of this book which is what Cercas calls the silent wake of hatred, resentment and violence left over by the war. The silent wake is explained by ignorance precisely of shared humanity Cercas names but doesnt explain. It is decrepitude: the fact of death.

It is known by every human being. Cercas tells a story about his great uncle but denies the significance of that story because he tells it with the old ideas in place, the ones Glaude says need to be shed, like swaddling clothes to begin again as Baldwin urged. Glaude is not sure it can happen. But it has happened. Thats the good news about the Henry Reeve Medical brigade, if it were explained.

On Friday, March 20, Cuban president, Miguel Diaz-Canel, speaking nationally, outlined new measures to slow the pandemic. The good news, he said, is that Cuban people supported the decision to accept the Braemar, a UK cruise ship refused docking elsewhere because of infected passengers. A century ago, another ship sought aid from Cuba. Its passengers were Jews. It was turned away.

That, Diaz-Canel said, was before the Revolution. The good news was the expectation that the Braemar should be helped. That expectation is the success of the Cuban revolution. It explains the Henry Reeve Brigade. Expectations come from practises, from what is lived. Diaz-Canel then said, one day the truth will be known. But what truth?

Excerpted from: 'Cubas Nobel Nomination and Baldwins Call to Begin Again'.

Courtesy: Counterpunch.org

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The dismissible - The News International

Classic works such as Odyssey by Homer, The Tempest by William Shakespeare and Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe tell about mysterious distant islands. These islands are usually exotic and inaccessible homes to treasures, spirits and immortals - providing the heroes with many strange adventures. From at least the third century BC, the Chinese culture regarded islands as sacred homes to the elixir of immortality. All these enticements then inspired a trend of voyages in search of sacred islands.

The early history of the quests in search of the sacred islands to gain immortality came to dominate imperial Chinese folklore of islands and the ocean. The narrative style of these quests first developed in the Ancient Chinese Classic of Mountains and Seas , acompilation of Chinese mythology, mythical geographyand cultural account of pre-QinChina.As Chinas maritime activity increased, fictions about islands of adventure gained popularity. This trend, in turn, inspired another trend of constructing artificial islands in imperial palace gardens.

Mount Penglai (Mountain of Immortals) by Tomioka Tessai (1924) ( Public Domain )

An influential fourth century BC Chinesephilosopher, Zhuang Zhou, tells of the immortals. The immortals are perfect beings who dwell in faraway islands, celebrated in poetry and paintings for their beauty and bountiful nature.

These islands became a favorite subject of Chinese and Japanese landscape painting. They had neither winter nor misery. However, they had high mountains, lush vegetation, clear blue waters as well as beautiful flora and fauna. The plants in these islands had magical qualities such as restoring youth and offering immortality to those who consume them. Other magical richness included waters of life, life-prolonging trees and enchanted fruits that can heal any ailment, grant eternal youth and even raise the dead.

The three most famous islands in Qin and Han Dynasty literary works are Penglai, Fangzhang and Yingzhou. Reports of these three sacred islands first appear in the late second centuryBC Taishi Official Book , better known as Records of the Grand Historian in which King Wei, King Xuan of Qi State, and King Zhao of Yan State sent their officials to look for the three sacred islands - Penglai, Fangzhang, and Yingzhou.

Penglai (detail), depiction of one of the mythical islands by Yuan Yao (18th century) ( Public Domain )

Seen from afar, the islands are covered in clouds. When regular people approached these islands, a disastrous wind would hit and force the boat to leave

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Martini Fisher is a Mythographer and author of many books, including Time Maps: Gods, Kings and Prophets | Check out MartiniFisher.com

Top Image : A 19th century ukiyo-e by Kuniyoshi depicting the ships of the great sea expedition sent around 219 BC by the first Chinese Emperor, Qin Shi Huang, to find the legendary home of the immortals, the Mount Penglai, and retrieve the elixir of immortality. ( Public Domain)

ByMartini Fisher

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Sacred Islands Of Exotic Eastern Gods And Elixir Of The Immortals - Ancient Origins

Its no stretch to say that a great deal of Tuukka Rasks ultimate legacy with the Bruins is tied up in the unprecedented 2020 Stanley Cup playoffs inside the bubble.

Sure, the 33-year-old is a Vezina Trophy finalist this season for the second time in his NHL career and is essentially in a two-man race with Winnipegs Connor Hellebuyck for the ultimate piece of goaltending hardware this season. The .929 save percentage and NHL-leading 2.25 goals against average speak for themselves about his dominance this year while largely splitting time with backup goalie Jaroslav Halak in a nearly equal split of playing time.

Truthfully, the regular season accolades go on and on for Rask as he continues to prove hes the best regular season goaltender in Bruins franchise history. Hes the all-time winningest goalie in Bruins history with 291 wins, and has the most games played (536), the most saves (13,711) and the best save percentage (.922) in the Bs nearly 100-year franchise history.

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Even his playoff stats are excellent as Rask ranks seventh all-time in NHL history with a .9268 save percentage in the postseason and is the active leader among all NHL goalies with a .9218 career save percentage in the regular season over his 13-year career.

He ranks third all-time in career save percentage behindDominik Hasek and Johnny Bower, both Hall of Famers. Clearly, the reduced workload paired with Jaroslav Halak has been a big deal to Rask in the last couple of seasons as hes approaching his mid-thirties. The reduced workload led directly to playing at a Vezina Trophy level all season and allowed Rask to carry the Bruins with a .934 save percentage during last springs run to the Stanley Cup Final.

Rask is even beginning to push his way into the Hockey Hall of Fame conversation as the career numbers pile up for him.

But there is an unfinished business element to his decade-long legacy with the Black and Gold after falling short in some extremely big moments for the Bruins during the postseason.

You look at as a process and when youre a young guy, youre just looking to make a name for yourself, said Rask. And then as the years go by you kind of learn different things about your game and about yourself, and what you need to do and what not [to do].

In the years where I needed to play a lot of games I had to focus on keeping my mind sharp and my body rested, and years where I didnt have to play a lot of games then you have more practice time. I think over the years its a balance of keeping your mind and body in sync. And you try to improve your game every day and every year and then before you know it ten years have gone by. You say wow and its been a long time when it doesnt feel like its been that long.

Rask has won a Stanley Cup as a backup to Tim Thomas in 2011, but the Finnish netminder has not been able to carry the Bruins to hockey immortality as the franchise guy. He has yet to get the Bs over the top in two tries at the Stanley Cup Final in 2013 and 2019 and the Bruins enter this postseason as the favorites after winning the Presidents'Trophy during the regular season.

If you look at the way our team is built, were built for a long run into the playoffs, said Rask. Unfortunately, we were heading to a direction when the league, and the whole world, came to a stop. Now we have to go back to building that chemistry with the same group as when it stopped. Obviously, winning a Stanley Cup or any trophy in Boston is a big thing.

Thats something we need to try for and thats our goal. We just have to adapt and build that groove and chemistry back up. The way I look at it is that all bets are off because everybody has been off for the last four months and were starting from scratch.

The Bruins' core group isnt getting any younger and neither is Rask as he enters the final year of his contract with Boston next season, so this may be the last, best chance for all of them to win one more before the championship window begins to close.

If Rask once again falls short this postseason, fair or not, it will cement a legacy that he was never able to carry the Bruins over the Cup threshold as Tim Thomas did almost 10 years ago when he pitched shutouts in Game 7 of both the Eastern Conference Final and then again in the Stanley Cup Final against the Vancouver Canucks. If he's not ready to play after the long layoff and the Bruins exit the postseason quickly, it will be even worse for all parties involved.

If Rask is able to play as he did last postseason, when he would have won the Conn Smythe Trophy had the Bs won Game 7 against St. Louis, and finish it off by playing well when the Bruins need him most in a Game 7-type situation, then it will be the crowning achievement in whats already been an exceptional regular season career. It could mean entry to the Hockey Hall of Fame for Rask, and it certainly would clinch his status as the best goalie in the nearly 100-year history of the Bruins franchise.

But all of it comes down to how things go for the goaltender and the Bs hockey club that takes many of its cues from exactly how he is playing between the pipes.

So, yeah, theres quite a bit riding on how things go for Rask in his go-round for the Bruins in the Stanley Cup playoffs.

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Hack job? What's the deal with David Pastrnak's latest tweet? - NBC Sports Boston

A ripe peach tender to the touch, floral and honeyed in the nose, slurpy on first bite is a sensory experience like few others. And that river of nectar flooding the tongue? For a few minutes, I am a hummingbird in flight, buzzing with unbridled joy.

If you can relate, then you know that the way to eat a peach in unadulterated bliss is over the sink just you and the peach having a moment with the juices running down your arms and the faucet at the ready for clean-up duty.

For many a peach lover, baking cobbler, churning ice cream and putting up jam are summertime traditions. Personally, I find the peach so teeth-tingling sweet in its natural state that I crave little adornment. Unless, of course, were going savory.

In fact, that inherent sweetness plays well with big and bold flavors typically reserved for the savory world including fresh basil and mint, chile peppers, onions and ginger root. Peaches like the smoke of charcoal and enjoy being grilled themselves or paired with grilled chicken, pork or shrimp.

Just days ago, I got to see for myself just how far savory I could take the sweet peach. Inspiration came while leafing through my dog-eared copy of Ripe, an ode to fruit by British food writer Nigel Slater.

In his essay on peaches, Slater shares, in his signature notebook style, a recipe for a peach-forward salad amped up with bold and beautiful basil and mint, sweet peppers and a kicky Viet-style dressing of fish sauce, limes and chile peppers.

Slater calls for shredded chicken, which is delightful, but if chicken is neither interesting nor available, the salad will still be a riot of color and flavor. Its that good.

As I built the salad, I added cucumber, a few cherry tomatoes and raw peanuts, along with some backyard romaine to line our plates. My husband envisions a side of rice or rice noodles for the next time. And as long as peaches are gracing farmstand shelves, there will definitely be a next time.

A salad of peaches and herbs (and maybe chicken) with a Viet-style dressing

Adapted from Ripe by Nigel Slater.

Makes 4 servings.

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Preheat the oven to 400 F.

In a small bowl, stir together the spices and oil, and rub all over the chicken. Place on a sheet pan or in a baking dish and roast until golden and cooked through, about 30 minutes. (This step can also be done on the grill and can be done in advance.) Remove the oven and let cool while you prep the rest of the salad.

Make the dressing: In a small bowl, stir together the fish sauce, lime and sugar with a fork until the sugar is dissolved. Add the chile pepper and scallions, stir and set aside under ready to serve. The flavors deepen as the dressing sits.

Slice the peaches in half, remove the pits and cut into 1/2-inch slices. Transfer to a large bowl. Add the pepper strips and the herbs. Resist the urge to stir.

Shred or thinly slice the chicken off the bone and add to the peach mixture. Add any of the optional add-ons and gently stir until evenly distributed.

When ready to serve, gradually add half of the dressing, stirring until well coated.

If using the lettuce, lay on a platter or on the bottom of a bowl, then place salad on top. Sprinkle with peanuts, if using, and bring the remaining dressing to the table.

The peach is an ancient Chinese relic, dating to fifth century B.C. when it was mentioned throughout a collection of poetry by Confucius. The peach was highly revered and continues to play an important role in the folklore of the Chinese people. Known as tao, the peach is the most

sacred plant of the Chinese Taoists, and is considered a magic fruit and a symbol of immortality, reflected in the Peach Blossom Spring, an essay by a Chinese poet during the fourth century B.C.

From China, the peach traveled to Persia and then onto Greece, and into the rest of Europe, thanks to peach lover Alexander the Great.

The peach came to Mexico in the early to mid-1500s via Spanish explorers. Throughout the 1600s, the peach traveled north from coastal Georgia and north Florida and was cultivated in the colonies of Virginia, Maryland and New Jersey.

First things first: Inhale (with social distancing in mind, of course). If you don't catch a whiff of that signature perfume, move on to the next peach. A ready-to-eat peach should be fragrant and invite you in.

For immediate consumption, choose fruit that has some tactile give, (similar to the fleshy part of your palm), but also that is free of bruises and boo-boos. On the other hand, if a peach is rock hard, it probably has been picked too early often the case for long-distance fruit and should be left behind.

Even for less-than-perfectly-ripe fruit, carefully transport your precious cargo home because it is highly perishable. I remember from my days working a fruit stand how wed have to pay special attention to the peaches on hot days to make sure they did not grow moldy beards.

Once home, keep peaches out of the refrigerator and out of direct sunlight. On the other hand, to buy some time for a ripe peach, stick it in the refrigerator, where it stops ripening. Caveat: Refrigeration invites moisture and shriveling.

Although tempting to place several almost-ripe peaches in a pretty bowl, keep in mind that they can mold even if rubbing up against each other.

Freeze for later

If peach season feels too short, consider freezing a bunch for later. Unlike berries, which can be frozen individually, peaches need a little more processing before the deep freeze. Drop the fruit into boiling water for about 45 seconds then into a bowl of ice water. This helps ease peeling, which is recommended. Once cool, slice in half and remove the pit. Cut each half into two or three pieces and place on a sheet pan to dry. Drizzle a small amount of fresh lemon juice on top and place in freezer until solid. Pack in freezer-safe containers or bags.

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Peaches are now in season; here's a recipe to enjoy the fruit with a savory salad - Fly Magazine

Kathryn Hahn is playing a "nosy neighbor" in WandaVision - could she be Agatha Harkness, a link to Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness?

Kathryn Hahnwill play an important role inWandaVision - and she could help link the upcoming Disney+ series toDoctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. The future has never looked brighter for Elizabeth Olsen's Scarlet Witch; not only is she co-star of her own Disney+ limited series, but this will set her up for a major role inDoctor Strange 2 as well.

Ever secretive, Marvel is keeping their plans for Scarlet Witch under wraps. It's safe to assume the studio is imitating the comics by retconning Wanda as a sorceress, as hinted by Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige himself. But will Wanda be an ally of the future Sorcerer Supreme, or will she be the cause of the "Multiverse of Madness," her powers wreaking havoc as they did in the comics? Whatever Scarlet Witch's arc may be,WandaVision will set it up, so all attention is focused on the Disney+ show.

Related:The MCU's Doctor Strange Totally Wasted The Time Stone

Particular attention has focused onKathryn Hahn, who joined the cast ofWandaVision in an undisclosed role. She's confirmed to be playing a "nosy neighbor," which sounds tame until you remember the kind of seriesWandaVision appears to be riffing on. Nosy neighbors are a crucial, frequently antagonistic force in sitcoms and soap operas. That's led to intense speculationHahn could actually be playing Agatha Harkness, a key ally of Scarlet Witch in the comics, who is frequently at odds with Wanda but ultimately became her mentor.

In the comics, Agatha Harkness was one of Marvel's most powerful witches. She claimed to be old enough to remember the fall of Atlantis over 10,000 years ago, and gained immortality through forbidden magic. In more modern times, the ruthless witch moved to America, and was involved in the slaughter of witches in New Salem. In fact, she turned several of her sisters over to the authorities, currying their favor and claiming she was culling the weak. Agatha Harkness became a governess after the Second World War, and was introduced when she was hired to look after Franklin Richards, the son of Mr. Fantastic and the Invisible Woman. Since then, she's played a key role as a mentor for some of Marvel's most powerful young heroes, or for nascent witches like Wanda Maximoff. Her relationship with Wanda was frequently antagonistic, and in the end Scarlet Witch killed her. In a perfectly comic-book twist, Agatha's ghost currently haunts Wanda, serving as her advisor.

While her exact role is unconfirmed, set photos suggestHahn is indeed playing the MCU's Agatha Harkness, but if so she'll probably be switched up a little; Marvel is unlikely to make her a near-immortal, for example, having already explored that trope with the Ancient One inDoctor Strange. More to the point, it's reasonable to assume Agatha wouldn't just be some random mystic, but rather would have strong ties to the magical community - perhaps meaning she had been trained by the Ancient One at Kamar-Taj. This means she could potentially serve as the bridge betweenWandaVision andDoctor Strange 2; the series could end with Wanda's magical potential revealed, and Agatha deciding to take her to Kamar-Taj for training. That plot would be a simple, organic one, and it would explain why Marvel hired such a notable actress to play a "nosy neighbor."

More:Doctor Strange 2: Every Theory About What Starts The Multiverse of Madness

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The Mandalorian: Where Han Solo Is During The Events Of The Show

Tom Bacon is one of Screen Rant's staff writers, and he's frankly amused that his childhood is back - and this time it's cool. Tom's focus tends to be on the various superhero franchises, as well as Star Wars, Doctor Who, and Star Trek; he's also an avid comic book reader. Over the years, Tom has built a strong relationship with aspects of the various fan communities, and is a Moderator on some of Facebook's largest MCU and X-Men groups. Previously, he's written entertainment news and articles for Movie Pilot.A graduate of Edge Hill University in the United Kingdom, Tom is still strongly connected with his alma mater; in fact, in his spare time he's a voluntary chaplain there. He's heavily involved with his local church, and anyone who checks him out on Twitter will quickly learn that he's interested in British politics as well.

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MCU Phase 4 Theory: Character Who Connects WandaVision To Doctor Strange 2 - Screen Rant

You know the old curse: May you live in interesting times.

As the pandemic rages, there seems to be an all-pervasive sense of sadness in the air. Americans are less happy than theyve been since happiness started to be measured, says New York Times columnistDavid Brooks.

It isnt just the one plague. Theres also a sense of dread about the political scene and the disorientation about how Americas overdue reckoning with racism and the legacy of slavery will play out. It seems almost impossible to live ones life outside of that troika of troubles these days.

Its not a cloud of doom, certainly, more a feeling of fraughtness. Is the trip to the grocery store a journey to COVID country? Will the 2020 election be a repeat of 2016 despite the polls? What is our proper response to the killing of George Floyd and the rise of Black Lives Matter?

But those are only the obvious sources of where we stand this summer. The existential grip on our senses and our place in the world is more pervasive and melancholy. On a personal level I feel it listening to Bob Dylans great new album, Rough and Rowdy Ways; reacting to deaths in my old Boston Globe family; reading the books on my nightstand, from Albert Camus The Plague to Ford Madox Fords The Good Soldier (which he wanted to call The Saddest Story); and, more obviously, watching the nightly news.

Yet none of this is crushing. In some way, its even inspiriting. Take "The Plague," speaking of existentialism and the pandemic. Although written in part as a post-war metaphor for the Nazis and their enablers in Vichy France, Camus always meant for it to speak to future generations.

Seems like he got his wish. There are the obvious parallels between the shutdown of the Algeriantown of Oran because of a rat-born virus and todays pandemic. Such as the line Stupidity has a knack of getting its way. Or the way Camus describes the war between the individualists and those who argue that the only way of defeating the plague is to realize that were all in this together, which President Trump acknowledgedafter months of denial.

Then theres Camus life-long rebellion against the silence of God. Just as prayer is useless in The Plague, religion is downright lethal against the amoral randomness of the pandemic. Gatherings for prayer, in fact, are among the most hard-hit in America and the world, regardless of religion.

The ineffectiveness of prayer could drive one to despair, particularly if one is a true believer, but the lessons for Camus are different. We have to forge our own meaning and morality rather than rely on puritanical religious bodies. Another lesson is that we need to recognize the front-line workers and scientists. Dr. Rieux in The Plague and Ed, a paramedic in the wrenching play "The Line" from the Public Theater, eschew the idea of heroism, but its Dr. Fauci, I mean Dr. Rieux, who proves to be the shaman of Oran. For all the sadness in the world, there is a resistance to plagues and self-aggrandizing politicians that is inspiring. You can say the same thing about how Black Lives Matter and #MeToo movements have turned tragedy into galvanized political action today.

The pandemic also has those of us of a certain age thinking about our own mortality. Three friends from the Boston Globe died during the pandemic, though none from the plague. (A great guy, Ron Hutson, did die of COVID-19, but I unfortunately didnt know him well.) I worked at the paper from 1971 to 2006 and copy editorsLouis Bell, Al Rossi and writerBob Levey defined what a fun, extended family the paper was when it operated on Morrissey Boulevard. Normally, a Globe funeral or memorial celebration turns into a kind of alumni/alumnae party with remembrances galore, often fueled by adult beverages.

I can imagine the gales of laughter about Bell sending a smoke bomb down on what was called the bunwarmer to his antagonists in the composing room; Rossi thinking he was sending an email about a coworker farting to a friend only to discover he had sent it to the wind-passer; and Levey telling jokes with the panache of Mort Sahl.

Still, theres something almost holy about remembering them by myself. They kind of encapsulate my 35 years at the Globe Bell driving me and my roommates home in the 70s where hed get stoned and often pass out on the couch; Rossi and me having a wild weekend in Las Vegas in the 80s; telling Levey a joke that made him roar in the 90s when we both made career changes and became critics in the Living Arts section, he with food and me with television. These memories are somehow dearer to me for thinking about them in confinement they define me as well as them. Obviously Im sad that theyre gone, but the smile on my face when I think of them is different than those gales of laughter at the memorial services that weren't to be.

And, of course, their deaths presage my mortality as well. Its hard not to think about that while readingJohn Williams "Stoner" or Joseph O'Connors "Shadowplay" as protagonists (including Bram Stoker in "Shadowplay") reflect on what their lives have amounted to or come down to. (Talk about sad, Stoker was not a literary success. "Dracula" rose from the dead 10 years after he died.)

Bob Dylans Rough and Rowdy Ways has mortality writ large from the opening lines Today and tomorrow, and yesterday, too/ The flowers are dyin like all things do to the final 17-minute "Murder Most Foul," ostensibly about the assassination of John Kennedy.

Almost every song speaks in stoical terms of loneliness, bitterness, sad guitars, dark days, killing frost, the age of the Antichrist and approaching death. Yet the whole album is both consolation and celebration. It is, among other things, a celebration of the Anglo-American 20th-century songbook, with Beethoven, Chopin and Liberace thrown in for good measure. Name a musical strain worth celebrating and its in Rough and Rowdy Ways, the title nodding Dylans head to Jimmie Rodgers and continuing through Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Elvis Presley, John Lee Hooker, Jimmy Reed, Etta James, Otis Redding, Ray Charles, Oscar Peterson and countless great jazz pianists, Sun Records, gospel, Leonard Cohen, Rick Nelson, the Everly Brothers, Rodgers & Hammerstein, the Beatles and the Stones and countless others. (The 21st-century songbook is for others to write, Dylan implied in a recent New York Times interview with Douglas Brinkley.)

Are Dylans references just name-dropping? No. Its a look back at his life, his life in song, the life of America in the 20th and 21st centuries and what lives they were and are. Hes a man of many muses and many moods, as he says in I Contain Multitudes. The influence of Walt Whitmans Leaves of Grass is everywhere in Rough and Rowdy Ways.

And like Whitman hes also a man of contradictions. Some observers have said that the album sounds like a farewell, but as one critic observed in the 1970s, many of his songs are suitable for both funerals and weddings. Like Camus and his Dr. Rieux, Dylan has to embrace the sadness of his days in order to come out the other side in a search for meaning and a kind of immortality.

As he sings in I Contain Multitudes:

I go right to the edge, I go right to the endI go right to where all things lost are made good again.

So for all the sadness and intimations of mortality that he faces in Rough and Rowdy Ways, there is a full embrace of life in all its melancholy and all its merriment.

Robert F. Kennedy makes a cameo in Murder Most Foul. RFK has been cited as the person who popularized the "interesting times" quote, in a 1966 address in South Africa: There is a Chinese curse which says 'May he live in interesting times.' Like it or not, we live in interesting times. They are times of danger and uncertainty; but they are also more open to the creative energy of men than any other time in history.

Though South Africa was still in the grip of apartheid, Kennedy delivered the plea to end discrimination on what he called a Day of Affirmation. We, too, live in interesting times and its up to us, like Kennedy and Camus, to see it not as a curse but as a personal and political affirmation.

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From Camus' 'The Plague' To Dylan's 'Rough And Rowdy Days,' Sad Is The New Happy - WBUR

Originally featured in the Real Madrid magazine, if you like this youll love our work in print. Thick matte card, stunning photos, creative design, original art and the best writing around. Support independent publishers and help improve the face of football journalism.

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The scholars of ancient Rome believed that every man has agenius; a guardian angel who blesses the household, ensures its prosperity, and protects it from bad spirits and harm. The modern interpretation of the word speaks to something entirely different, of course: an exceptional creative power or natural ability, one that spurs advances in a particular field. The greatest midfielder in Real Madrids modern history meets both definitions.

Fernando Carlos Redondo was born in Adrogu, a leafy suburb of Buenos Aires, in 1969. He had a middle-class childhood. There were no dodgypotrerosto escape from here; no deprived communities or rasping poverty to rail against.

Little Fernando couldve done anything, but it was clear from an early age that football was his passion. His father, a former midfielder himself, was a rabid Independiente fan who would gather his family around the television forgames. Together, they would be transfixed as Ricardo Bochini and Daniel Bertoni ledEl Rojoto successive Copa Libertadores trophies in the 1970s. Bewitched, Fernando would emulate their triumphs in the back garden with his brother Leo, before seeking more organised competition with the local youth team.

It was inevitable that he would be noticed. Even as a child he stood apart, spindly yet authoritative, slight but imposing.Fernando didnt have much in the way of pace orstrength, but there was something glacial in his technique, something implacable about his decision-making. Every pass was precise and intelligent, every dip into space the product of a decision that had been taken two seconds before everyone else.

Aged 11, Argentinos Juniors scout Oscar Refojos had seen enough. He visited the Redondo home, imploring that their son be allowed to join the same club that had nurtured talents like Jos Pekerman and Diego Maradona.In the Redondofamily, commitment means something. It explained why Redondos father also called Fernando, like his own father before him thought nothing of the hour-long commutes to his sons training sessions in La Paternal. It explained, too, why his son had raced straight from the chapel on the day of his first communion to take part in a youth game. Redondos turned up and did the work, no matter what got in the way.

It was just as well because coach Fernando Cornejoknew there was more to be done. The Argentinos trainer, who had first spotted Maradona as a grubby eight-year-old, was quick to see the qualities of his clubs bristling young recruit. But he was too flashy, using tricks and flicks when a simple pass would do. I always had a tendency to use the gambeta, Redondo admitted to Argentine reporters years later.He told me it was a weapon that you have to use at certain times.

It says something about Redondo that he won aninternational trophy five months before his professional debut. In April 1985, he had been the best player in an Argentina team that lifted the prestigious Under-16 South American championship. In front of 40,000 fans at the Estadio Jos Amalfitani, he had outshone Diego Maradonas brother Hugo in a 3-2 victory over Brazil, proceeding to give a valedictory speech to pitchside reporters after the game. Lithe and good-looking, the TV cameras couldnt help but be drawn to this precocious teenager on a path to legend.

It was no surprise, then, when Redondo finally made his debut as a professional against Gimnasia that September. Thirty minutes into the match, coach Jos Ydica threw him on in place of Armando Dely Valds.Unruffledby the occasion, the youngster delivered a calm, mature performance in the 1-1 draw that followed, but he would only become a first-team regular upon the departure of Sergio Batista to River Plate in 1988.

Read | Valdano, Redondo, Rafa and Rocha: the unforgettable rise and fall of Tenerife in the 1990s

Asked about the archetype of an Argentine player,Redondo would later tell journalist Daniel Balmaceda that he had to be, Skilled, talented, with character. A winning player who overcomes difficult moments. Intelligent, knows how to read the game. Without even trying, he had summed up the very qualities that made him the first name on the Argentinos teamsheet. By 1990, it was clear to every pundit and commentator that he was ready to make the jump to Europe.

Argentinos had inadvertently helped grease the wheels by forgetting to issue contract renewals to their players at the end of the season. As a result, the entire squad was released. To the relief of the club administrators, they all returned except for one.

Redondo had been approached by Jorge Solari uncle of future Real Madrid winger Santiago and a respected player and manager himself who had just been appointed boss of LaLiga side Tenerife. Having barely survived relegation the previous year, the islanders were determined to build a side capable of reaching the European places.Promising young talents like Albert Ferrer arrived on loan, as well as more exotic imports like Tata Martino. It was the arrival of the latters youthful compatriot, however, that would really set theTenerfioson the path to success.

All eyes were drawn to the young midfielder, and not just because of the luscious brown hair that rolled down his shoulders. Redondo was very much a number 5, but not in the traditional Argentine sense. Much of that countrys footballing identity can be summed up by the eternalbattle between the practicality and aggression of thecinco,and the effervescent creativity of thepibe.

Yet Redondo, as his performances at Tenerife would attest, was a devastating amalgam of both. He was an excavator of space, unearthing pockets of the pitch with a flick of movement or a chisel of a backheel. He was almost feminine in the way he glided across the Canarian pitch, his elegance given ballast by a winners temperament and a simmering aggressive streak. On one occasion in a match against Osasuna, he had even got into an altercation with an irate opponent, sending him crashing to the floor before throwing a clump of grass in his direction and telling him to eat, donkey!

Despite all the investment, however, Tenerife failed to rise beyond mid-table. The only highlight of the following year had been a final-day victory over Real Madrid that had deniedthem the title. By then, Solari had been sacked, replaced by Jorge Valdano.

The Argentine had barely retired when he was offered the job as a 36-year-old. His arrival brought an instant upturn in fortunes, with Tenerife narrowly escaping relegation, but it was the following year when they really wowed onlookers, storming to fifth and a place in the UEFA Cup. Redondo was ever-present, the lynchpin of an aggressive and dynamic midfield. If there is one thing I have to say to him, Valdano would later confess, its that hes one of the few players who can do with their feet what they think with their heads. He is the only player I ever wanted in my team.

It was only natural, then, that he should take Redondo with him when he accepted the Real Madrid job in the summer of 1994. TheMadrileosnew number 6 became an instant favourite at the Bernabu, and no wonder. Rarely has matrimony between club and player felt so natural. Redondos style was all about class and sophistication; his talents were pristine, almost regal.

That, and his movie-star features, had led international teammate Diego Simeone to jokingly christen him as El Principeduring a tournament in Saudi Arabia two years earlier. It was a fitting sobriquet, with Redondo ruling benignly over LaLigas footballing serfs. With his long, straight hair and all-white outfit, he looked more like a bride on a wedding day, pledging everlasting love to the ball at his feet.

Read | Predrag Mijatovi: the LaLiga diaries

Needless to say, Valdanos Real side secured the title at the first time of asking. At times, the football was breathtaking, Ivn Zamorno and Michael Laudrup the beneficiaries of Redondos vision and accuracy from deep. I loved playing there, Redondo would later gush to journalist Diego Berlinsky about his role at the base of midfield. It is a position from which you have a very important vision of your team and the game. There are times when you have to slow down, and others to deepen and accelerate. The 5 gives defensive balance to the team and contributes to the elaboration of the game. It seems to be a key position.

As welcome as the league title had been, a millstone hung steadfastly on Real Madrids neck. The Champions Leaguetrophy had eluded them for three decades. Despite domestic success, Valdano hadnt been able to crack the code, departing midway through a wayward sophomore campaign. His successor, Fabio Capello, had struggled too, even as he managed to nab another league trophy. By the beginning of the 1997/98 campaign, Reals image was in real danger of being tarnished.How could a club that was synonymous with success fail so abjectly to win the Champions League?

It was a question on Redondos mind too. He had been a mainstay of Capellos team, with the Italian leaning heavily on a player he gushingly described as tactically perfect.Yet one world-class talent does not a team make. Whilst Real Madrid faltered on the grandest stage, Silvio Berlusconis AC Milan raced to the fore. The Italians now had five European Cups to the Spaniards six. A new hegemony was being threatened, with Real Madrids disastrous domestic campaign suggesting little in the way of opposition.

Indeed, manager Jupp Heynckes was virtually assured of the sack even as his side progressed through the knockout rounds against Bayer Leverkusen and Borussia Dortmund. In the first leg against Matthias Sammers reigning champions, Redondo had been superb, single-handedly inspiring a 2-0 victory.

But fellow finalists Juventus were stronger in every department: better players, better tactics, better manager. On the eve of the final in Amsterdam, Reals nail-bitten players skulked the corridors of their hotel, staying upuntil 4aminthe lobby exchanging stories. They convinced themselves that they werent afraid, that they were ready to turn the page on a calamitous season.

The 1998 Champions League final was possibly the most important game in Real Madrids history, club captain Manolo Sanchs later admitted toESPN. Thats not to say that the others werent, but the club had been waiting for 32 years.In all that time the hunger had been growing among the fans, the players and the club, and you can imagine the desire we had when the day came.

Redondo faced arguably the greatest challenge of all. His direct opponent was Zinedine Zidane alongside Ronaldo the best player in the world at the time a man who would shortly lead France to World Cup glory. In the opening half, the Argentine struggled to contain him, left gasping as Zidane summoned all of his powers.

Gradually, however, Redondo gained a foothold, gently constricting his opponent until there was simply no air left for Zidane to breathe.As the Frenchmans confidence waned, Real Madrids determination grew. With 67 minutes gone, Predrag Mijatovi scored the goal that brought the club back to the promised land.

Read | Ral, Fernando Morientes and the reshaping of Real Madrid as a continental power

Half a million people poured onto the streets of Madrid in the parties that followed. It was a night of vindication for club president Lorenzo Sanz, whod been elected in 1995 on the promise of European glory. It was justification, too, for the millions he had spent in recruiting the likes of Roberto Carlos, Clarence Seedorf andDavor uker.Mostly, however, it was a rendezvous with fate. Real Madrid, the club of the European Cup, had reclaimed its legacy after decades of yearning and strife.Redondo, selfless in his dedication to the cause, had been at the centre of it all.

Having already resigned to his fate, Heynckes left the club. His replacement, Jos Antonio Camacho, fared little better, sacked after less than a month due to a fall out with the president. Guus Hiddink arrived to a group that had become complacent and unfit, with his normally telepathic sense for player management having little effect on a squad that was bloated and bereft.

By February 1999, he too was gone after publicly criticising the efforts of his wayward stars. When I arrived at the end of February, it was a very difficult time, revealed interim coach John Toshack in the bookToshacks Way. There was no drive among the players. There was a general malaise caused by a few bad apples in the group. It was enough to drag the team down and keep them there. Most of them were not training hard enough and they were not as fit as they should have been.

Toshack setting about stomping on his players egos, seeing fit to run them into the ground during every training session. By seasons end, the Welshmansltigo(whip) had salvaged a second-placed finish in the league.He made way in the summer another presidential fall-out, another departure, another interim hire.

Vicente del Bosque was placid and demurring, a man Sanz could mould to his will. Hewas a guarantee of tranquillity at a club in increasing danger of becoming a basketcase.Redondo identified a kindred spirit in his new coach, however.Del Bosque had the same temperament: respectful and decent, almost introverted. He had been a left-footed playmaker too, reliant on technical gifts rather than physical prowess.

Del Bosque, in return, singled out the Argentine as the key to his rebuilding effort. Redondo was the player with the most personality, the Spaniard would later reveal, calling him an inspiring footballer who dominates the centre of the field by himself.

Personality wouldnt be enough to get Real winning again, however. The team needed strengthening. Nicolas Anelka was the headline recruit of a hectic summer, but equally important were the captures of Michel Salgado and Ivan Hlguera for a combined fee of 10m. Steve McManaman, meanwhile, was captured on a free from Liverpool.

Del Bosque had done much to reinvigorate the dressing room, but results still faltered. By Christmas, Real had succumbed to embarrassing home defeats to Valencia and bitter rivals Atltico.The club had stumbled through the Champions League group stages, chastened by twin collapses to Bayern Munich. When they were drawn against title holders Manchester United in the quarter-finals, mostMadridistasresigned themselves to another year of hurt. A goalless draw at home in the first leg only worsened that fear. Some bookies gave them long odds of 66-1 to progress.

Read | Nine trophies in 342 games: the colossal legacy of Vicente del Bosque

It feels reductive to say thathistory was made in a single moment. We all know that events are influenced by a myriad of factors; a network of often unrelated happenings, coinciding to produce art, love, even time itself. Yet there is an undeniable weight about one moment in particular from that second leg at Old Trafford.

You already know what it is. You are conjuring the visitors black and gold jersey in your minds eye, imagining the slick of Redondos hair as he runs towards the touchline with 52 minutes gone. You are imagining Henning Berg, expertly closing down the space. Reals number 6, for the first time all night, has nowhere to go.What happens next is part instinct, true but what happens next also sums up Redondos most brilliant strengths.

His peerless positioning and angelic technique; his understated arrogance and unfathomable cojones.Attempting to describe El Taconazo(The Heel)with mere words does no justice to its phenomenon; only YouTube clips, circulated on 19April every year, come anywhere close. If there were one moment, from one player, in one match to sum up an entire clubs ethos, this was it.

It didnt matter if you were the reigning European champions, managed by the most successful coach in modern history; it didnt matter if you were Henning Berg, Roy Keane, or David Beckham. In one stunning moment, Redondo reminded the world that Real Madrid was the only show in town. An entire stadium was left delirious as he ran to the byline, rolling a clever ball to Ral: 3-0 on the night, and one of footballs greatest moments captured in all its floodlit glory.

United rallied but it was to no avail. The champions were out, Old Trafford defying itself to offer a round of applause to their conquerors. Berg, in the words of his teammate Raymond van der Gouw, would be killed by the moment that so crystallised Redondos quality. But the Real man had no time for praise and accolades vengeance was on his mind.

The semis pitted Real against a team that had already scored eight goals against them that year. Stefan Effenberg, Ottmar Hitzfeld and Lothar Matthus were the scions of a Teutonic dynasty, keen on their own revenge after a disastrous final defeat the season before. On this occasion, however, their desires would not be sated.

In front of 95,000 supporters at the Bernabu, Redondo was one player in a team of 11 captains. The semi-final performance spoke to Reals transformation under Del Bosque and the influence of his on-field lieutenant. Each player hounded and fought, launching salvos from the safety of Redondos steadying presence in the middle of the field.

Inevitably, he was involved in the first goal, building the play neatly with McManaman before the Englishman shifted the ball to Ral. The Argentine, seeing Anelka break away from the Bayern defence, pointed urgently into space, imploring his teammate to put the ball through.Ral obeyed and Madrid took the lead.

Read | Juan Romn Riquelme: the dream comes first

Jens Jeremies own goal set up a comfortable lead for the return-leg but that didnt stop the Germans going straight for their opponents throat from the off. Carsten Jancker scored first, but Anelkas equaliser was the heartbreaker.Even as lber nodded in a second, Real clung on. It was their first final since1998.

Valencia offered one final hurdle. They were younger, fitter and in better form, with Gaizka Mendieta on an upward curve that would see him voted UEFA Midfielder of the Year. Yet Redondo, 30 years old and with several finals already behind him, had time for one last lecture.On a warm evening in Paris, one of the most lopsided finals in European history unfolded. Valencia were fretful and jittery, juxtaposed perfectly with the wise old heads in white. Redondo, ably assisted by McManaman and Ral, led a meticulous obliteration of the opposing midfield.

The first goal from Fernando Morientes effectively killed the game. Normally defensive and stern, Hctor Cpers men didnt know how to take the game to their masters.Two more goals from McManaman and Ral followed, and Los Blancos for the eighth time in their history were European champions.

Perhaps it is too simplistic to say that Sanz losing the presidential election that summer put paid to Redondos time at the club. Perhaps it is too crude to say thatLos Merengues, with all their politicking, backstabbing and favour-currying, sunk to a new low by jettisoning their best player, the UEFA Club Footballer of the Year in the off-season.

Perhaps it isnt, though. In the build-up to the vote between Sanz and challenger Florentino Prez, Redondo had nailed his colours firmly to the formers mast. And why wouldnt he? Sanz, after all, was the president who had deliveredLa Sptima.His was the tenure that had brought the current European title too, not to mention luminaries like Capello, Roberto Carlos, Seedorf and Morientes. Redondo knew a winner when he saw one, even if there had been a few too many errant league campaigns and managerial casualties along the way.

It was probably fitting, however, that Redondo departed the club before it became a parody of itself. He had been the visionary director of an arthouse feature and had no meaningful place in the brainless franchise of theGalcticosera that followed.The least he deserved, though, was to be informed about his own departure before the club announced it.

Reals new president denied him that courtesy. It didnt matter when Redondo protested publicly: Real is my home and as far as it depends on me, I see no reason to desire another. If Real do not want me, it is clear that one way is to get rid of me.The club even tried to spin the departure as being of Redondos own making; Real fans, knew better. He left the city having returned its biggest club, across six glorious seasons, to the pinnacle of the European game.

In another sense, though, Redondo never left Madrid. He will never leave. His elegance still haunts the vaulted corridors of the twinkling Bernabu. His charisma still suffuses the famous old pitch, his legacy recalled in every world-class signing, every first-place finish, every Real captain who gets to hold the Champions League aloft. His legacy lives on in Real Madrid hearts, minds and trophy cabinets alike.

By Christopher Weir @chrisw45

Art by Tom Griffiths @ArTomGriffiths

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Fernando Redondo and the rise to immortality at Real Madrid - These Football Times

FromSoftware games are known to feature lots of parallels to previous titles, but could one of the studio's most famous enemies pop up in Elden Ring?

From Dark SoulstoBloodborne,Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice and (hopefully soon enough)Elden Ring, studio FromSoftware has created some of the most visually-distinct and intricately-designed video games ever made. Although many of its gamestake place in their own, self-contained universes, the developer is wont to sprinkle inan Easter egg or two every now again, leading players to wonder whether the worlds of the undead, hunters and samurai may be connected after all.

Unless FromSoftware breaks this tradition, their upcoming open world RPG Elden Ring is sure to feature a few leftovers from previous projects. How prominent a role these leftovers will play in the story and gameplay is, however, another question altogether. While players should probably expect to find the rusted armor set of an Ashen One discarded by some smoldering camp fire, they could very well get to face off against one of the developer's oldest and most iconic enemies, too.

Related: Elden Ring Might Be A Sci-Fi RPG Disguised As Fantasy (Really)

That enemy is, of course, Seath the Scaleless. First introduced in the original Dark Souls, Seath was one of the Everlasting Dragons who allied himself with the game's final boss, Lord Gwyn, and turned against his own kind. Born, as his name suggests, without the powerful and magical scale armor of his brethren, the monster would go on to spend the rest of his life in search of immortality a right which, unlike other dragons, he had been denied.

Why would Seath appear in Elden Ring? For one, he fits the setting. Not only is the world of Elden Ringmodeledafter a medieval society filled withfantastical creatures, said world has also been designed by none other than George R.R. Martin, the writer behind the popular fantasy series A Song of Ice and Fire and, by extension, HBO's hit show Game of Thrones. As dragons feature prominently in Martin's work, chances are they will show up in Elden Ring as well.

Of course, just because dragons could show potentially up in the game that does not mean one of them is going to be Seath. And yet, the preliminary themes of Elden Ring clearly resemble those of Seath's own story. Not only has FromSoftware's director, Hidetaka Miyazaki, stated the game will be a "natural evolution" of the Dark Souls series in particular, he has also said that the game is going to center aroundideas of will and ambition. On top of that, the game's trailer promises asociety whose balance has been tipped. Sound familiar?

Even if Seath will not make a direct appearance in Elden Ring, the game will likelyfeature a character similar to him as the narratives of FromSoftware's various games, despite being set in different universes, frequently parallel one another. In each game the studio has ever made, the player character has a tenuous relationship with death, and ventures through a kingdom in decay in search of salvation.If Seath won't make a direct appearance, then, surely his spiritual successor will.

Next: Will Elden Ring Have Difficulty Settings?

Halo Infinite Campaign Demo Brought To PS4 In Gorgeous Dreams Creation

Tim is a Dutch journalist living in New York. He studied film and literature at NYU, his favorites movies are Kung Fu Panda and Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, and his writing has appeared in PopMatters, History Today and The New York Observer among others.

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Will Seath the Scaleless Be In FromSoftware's Elden Ring Too? - Screen Rant

When an event is unexplained, it cant be repeated. Cubas astonishing internationalism, the good news of the pandemic, is talked about (outside Cuba) as if a miracle, without cause. Support grows for the Nobel Prize nomination but the justification for the Henry Reeve Brigade, established in 2005, is left out. The explanation is ideas.

It is urgent according to Eddie Glaude in a new book on James Baldwin.[1] Well, he doesnt exactly say that. But for Baldwin, what kind of human beings we aspire to be is most important and the explanation for Cubas success is precisely that. In Zona Roja, Enrique Ubieta Gmez says Cuban medical workers fighting Ebola in 2014 know about existence: We exist interdependently. Ubieta describes Cuban internationalism as an inescapable ethic. Once youve lived it, you cannot not live it.

You know human connection a fact of science and you learn its energy.

Ubietas explanation is existential. Baldwin used similar language. In 1963, he wrote, Perhaps the whole root of our trouble, the human trouble, is that we imprison ourselves to deny the fact of death, which is the only fact we have. Glaude supports Baldwins call to begin again, with the America idea, shedding its old ideas. He might look South. Latin American independistas raised precisely Baldwins question: how to resist the lie at the heart of the [imperialist] nation when it is about love, life and death, that is, everything.

Truth is not enough. If Galileo had just provided truths, he wouldnt have been condemned. Galileo became threatening when he made those truths plausible with a larger picture of cosmic humility, contradicting the establishments comforting identity. One thing we might learn from Galileo, according to astrophysicist Mario Livio in a new book, is that he didnt just observe truths and tell stories about them. His phenomenal capacity for abstraction let him see where those truths led. [2]

Truths are easy when unexplained. Consider Olga Tokarczuks Flights. It gives truth about people traveling everywhere escaping their own lives, and then being safely escorted right back to them.[3] We see people running through airports with flushed red faces, their straw hats and souvenir drums and masks and shell necklaces. All this moving around in a chaotic fashion [to] increase their likelihood of being in the right place at the right time even has meaning. A travel psychologist explains that such chaos appears to call into question the existence of a self understood non-relationally.

It is funny to expect deeper meaning regarding people moving around in a chaotic fashion to increase their likelihood of being in the right place at the right time from a travel psychologist at an airport between flights. We laugh because we do in fact expect that, absurdly.

We get truth from Flights but its dismissible. Annushka, for instance, escapes her unbearable life : to go, sway, walk, run, take flight. She finds happiness when she does not have a single thought in her head, a single care, a single expectation or hope. Shes happy, free of her identity, her life, her responsibilities. But she is also cold, hungry, dirty, alone, tired, and homeless. The image is silly.

In fact, the idea underlying it is silly, namely, that to have no thoughts, you should have no identity, no responsibilities. Its as pervasive as friction, from which Galileo abstracted to get truth about inertia. In fact, to be happy with no expectations or hope, as Annushka is, is not silly. But understanding how that is so requires a phenomenal capacity for abstraction from social expectations.

Flights doesnt do that. It responds to an expectation identified by Cuban philosopher and diplomat Ral Roa in 1953 as the worlds gravest crisis.[4] It was indeed the America idea: Human beings imprisoned in discrete selves, defined by action and results. It is not humanist, as claimed, Roa argues, because it omits the fact of death, as Baldwin recognized. There were few dissenters to the man of action during the Renaissance, and Roa saw there would now be none because of US power.

Baldwin tried to escape that power by living outside the US. He struggled with what it had made of him. But American power follows one everywhere.

Emily Dickinson, the greatest poet in the English language, abstracts from expectations Flights dignifies. According to biographer Martha Ackman, Dickinson lived as if busyness and travel is not progress.[5] She never apologized for, nor defended, the priority she gave to silence and solitude. As result, we get truth from her poetry: about what it means to be human. For, she was in fact not detached from a world she never visited physically or had any desire to.

She lived as if isolation and detachment are not synonymous. But to know where this leads, you must abstract from the America idea that equates human worth and utility. Comfortably, though, Dickinson is odd Americas most enigmatic and mysterious poet and her way of life therefore dismissible.

Lord of all the Dead, like Flights, leaves comforting old ideas in place. [6]Javier Cercas tells the story of his great-uncle who fought a useless war for Franko. His memoire does give truth but doesnt explain it, so his story, which for him is just a story, cannot itself explain, and is dismissible.

Achilles in The Odyssey is lord of all the dead because he died young and beautiful, and gained immortality. That his great uncle was politically mistaken, theres no doubt. But was he a human failure? Cercas answer is no. At one level, Cercas rejects the Greeks ideal of beautiful death because it denies the existential reality of decrepitude: There is no escaping it. But on the other hand, Cercas assumes the separation of mind and body that makes beautiful death worth speculating about: the idea that the body decays and that the mind somehow escapes natures universal laws of causation.

He ends the book speculating about immortality. Nobody dies, he writes. Were just transformed, physically. He himself, at books end, is in the eternal present. It doesnt explain what needs to be explained, given the real story of this book which is what Cercas calls the silent wake of hatred, resentment and violence left over by the war. The silent wake is explained by ignorance precisely of shared humanity Cercas names but doesnt explain. It is decrepitude: the fact of death.

It is known by every human being. Cercas tells a story about his great uncle but denies the significance of that story because he tells it with the old ideas in place, the ones Glaude says need to be shed, like swaddling clothes to begin again as Baldwin urged. Glaude is not sure it can happen. But it has happened. Thats the good news about the Henry Reeve Medical brigade, if it were explained.

On Friday, March 20, Cuban president, Miguel Diaz-Canel, speaking nationally, outlined new measures to slow the pandemic. The good news, he said, is that Cuban people supported the decision to accept the Braemar, a UK cruise ship refused docking elsewhere because of infected passengers. A century ago, another ship sought aid from Cuba. Its passengers were Jews. It was turned away.

That, Diaz-Canel said, was before the Revolution. The good news was the expectation that the Braemar should be helped. That expectation is the success of the Cuban revolution. It explains the Henry Reeve Brigade. Expectations come from practises, from what is lived. Diaz-Canel then said, one day the truth will be known. But what truth? Its not the truth that solidarity is good. No, the truth that will be known is not moral. Instead, it is what that truth the moral one about solidarity does existentially when acted upon, and lived, and why that matters in a global crisis.

Baldwins humanism wasnt easy to understand. Glaudes thoughtful book goes some distance toward explaining. Its not clear, though, whether he knows the consequences. Bill V. Mullen, in a 2019 book, says Baldwin should be understood the way we understand Fanon, Garca Marquez, Assata Shakur: They wrote outside the US, aware of imperialism. [7]

It may be what it takes for Cuba to cease being a dismissible miracle.

Notes.

1) Begin Again: James Baldwins America and its Urgent Lessons for Our Own by Eddie Glaude Jr.(Penguin Random House, 2020). See review: https://www.nyjournalofbooks.com/book-review/begin-again-james-baldwins

2) Galileo and the Science Deniers by Mario Livio (Simon and Schuster, 2020) 181

3) tr. Jennifer Croft (NY: Riverhead Books, 2017) 62

4) Grandeza y servidumbre del humanismo, Viento Sur (Havana: Centro Cultural Pablo de la Torriente Brau, 2015) 44-62

5) These Fevered Days: Ten Pivotal Moments in the Making of Emily Dickinson by Martha Ackman ( W.W. Norton & Company, 2020).

6) Lord of all the Dead by Javier Cercas, tr. Anne McLean (Alfred A Knopf, 2020). See review: https://www.nyjournalofbooks.com/book-review/lord-all-dead

7) James Baldwin: Living in Fire by Bill V. Mullen (Pluto Press: 2019) xv

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Cuba's Nobel Nomination and Baldwin's Call to Begin Again - CounterPunch