Author: kenritley

Then and Now – Spaghetti Westerns

kenritley

Somewhere deep in the deserts of Spain scenes like this were filmed,

Here, Lee Van Cleef was very upset and probably wanted to kill someone.

Today, the situation is hardly any different,

I took this snap on the “down low” because the Spanish lady who was drying her clothes SNARLED at me as I walked by.

Sadly, as far as I can tell, the residents of Los Albaricoques in Spain are NOT happy to have tourists in their town. It is a small town – and a poor one, by the looks of the infrastructure and tremendous trash all over the village. Oddly, there are new signs directing tourists to the key points where scenes in movies were shot. But I could see no benefits to the tourists, except for the many disruptions and “gawkers” this brought into their lives.

Business-Bytes 1 – 5

kenritley

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BUSINESS-BYTES IS TAKING A HOLIDAY BREAK!

In the past few weeks I’ve been publishing around one “Business Byte” per week in LinkedIn – essentially, a very short post to explain something cool and important about the business world that new college graduates might not know. (Well, since I teach college graduates, I can confirm, a lot of what we take for granted in the business world is quite new to them.)

Amazingly, I’ve gotten over 30K views so far!

If you’d like to look at them during the holiday season, here’s a list!

graphical user interface, application

BB 05 – Dealing with executives from different generations

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BB04 – Chats and Emails

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BB03 – Editing PowerPoints in a Group

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BB02 – Name your files professionally

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BB01 – Get a good bound notebook

 

Did I capture a UFO over Biel?

kenritley

I was trying out my new Tamron 18x400mm telephoto lens on my seagull Marvin, and his friend, perched on their usual perch, a base station across from my apartment:

That’s Marvin on the left. Anyway, I took another snap about 1 second later, and I saw this – which as you can see, also caught the attention of Marvin and his buddy:

As you can see a strange white ball in the sky.  Here is what it looks like when I zoomed in:

What I find amazing: I would have never seen this little white dot if it weren’t for my telephoto lens. So it makes me stop to think: all those videos that shows UFOs that the US Navy and US Air Force has recorded – maybe they are very same as the case here – without a telephoto lense, you just cannot see them?  

Alte Papierfabrik Biberist

kenritley

ChatGPT had the following to say about this place:

The paper factory in Biberist (just outside Solothurn) operated for over 150 years and supplied Switzerland with printing paper, packaging material, and later high-quality specialty papers. At its peak, it employed several hundred workers and shaped the entire region.

Shut down in 2011 — and slowly reborn
After the factory closed, the huge site didn’t vanish. Instead, it entered a long-term transformation into a new district for:

• guided industrial-heritage tours
• artist studios and creative spaces
• cultural events
• small tech and production companies
• exhibitions about the paper-making process

Visitors can now walk through parts of the old plant, see original machines, and get a sense of the enormous energy and water systems required to run a mill of this scale.

Amazing how time flies – 2

kenritley

Continuing the series, here’s a current lifetime snapshop of my scientific articles:

I guess I was never too keen on having a huge number of citations for any particular article – it makes me much more proud to see the staying power of some of these; that is, over 30 years have gone by since I started publishing, and over 20 years have gone by since I stopped – and still at least a handful of people find my little contributions to be useful enough to cite!

Einsiedelei in der Verenaschlucht in Solothurn

kenritley

ChatGPT had to say this about the place:

• It sits at the far end of the Verenaschlucht, a narrow, shaded gorge just outside Solothurn, known for its mossy bridges, water channels, and quiet hiking paths.
• The small complex includes the St. Verena Chapel, the St. Martin Chapel, and the hermit’s living quarters.
• For centuries, the site has maintained a tradition of having a resident hermit or caretaker — historically a religious hermit, today more of a spiritual custodian.
• Even now, one person still lives there, tending the site, ringing the bell, keeping candles lit, and caring for the visitors who come for reflection or prayer.
• The place blends nature and spirituality — water trickles through the gorge, candles flicker in the stone niches, and it feels almost outside of time.

Then and Now – Bern – Bundesplatz

kenritley

THEN:

NOW:

NOW (COLOR):

COMMENTS: 

(1) Very few changes!

(2) I took this snap on a Sunday, but Tuesdays and Saturdays there are markets here!

(3) The signage is much smaller today, but the Café Federal is still present on the right!

(4) Those tricky Bernese!  In the modern snap you see buildings that you THINK are old – such as the ones in the middle – but in fact, Bern had a huge renovation program all during the early 20th century, in which the truly historical facades were destroyed and replaced by modern facades that only look old.

Then and Now – Bern – Waisenhausplatz & Spitalgasse

kenritley

THEN:

NOW:

NOW (COLOR):

COMMENTS:

(1) This changed a LOT!  People think Bern is old – but in fact there were huge projects in the early 1900s that harmonized the facades and rooflines.

(2) Interestingly, that little booth with the pointy top – people look at it today and hardly give it a thought, and yet in the original snap you can see an early version of it. So booth may it be – but a historical one!